Commonwealth Games 2022 Medals: What do the medals represent, what are they made of, who made them, and how many are presented?

Hundreds of athletes have flocked to Birmingham for the 2022 Commonwealth Games with one common dream – to return home with a medal around their neck.

Every Commonwealth Games has its own distinctive never-to-be-reproduced medal, and the Birmingham 2022 have really pulled out all the stops to make their’s extra-special.

The all-female design team have come up with an prize that has unique design features – from the medal itself to the ribbon it hangs on and the box it is presented in.

Here’s everything you need to know about the circles of metal that everybody want to win.

Who designed the Birmingham 2022 medals?

The medals have been designed by three students from Birmingham’s School of Jewellery – Amber Alys, with Francesca Wilcox and Catarina Rodrigues Caeiro.

The three students, along with dozens of others, individually entered a competition organised by the school and the Birmingham 2022 team, and as they moved through the judging process, they were brought together as a team.

They also designed the box and the ribbon that accompanies the medal.

The medals that will be presented to successful athletes at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

What does the design mean?

The designers took inspiration from the journey that athletes take to reach their goal of competing at the Games, and so embossed areas, symbolising an aerial map of the host region’s road and canal network, have been included as a key feature of the design.

What special design features do the medal, ribbon and box have?

The medal has been created so that is it textured and has a tactile quality, so all athletes, and especially those with a visual impairment, can feel the design.

The ribbon attached to the medal is also adjustable, so that it sits comfortably when worn, no matter the height of the athlete or Para athlete wearing it.

The medal winners will also be given a box in which to keep the medal, and this features the aerial map design too, providing a clear connection to the design of the medal.

Who made the medals?

Toye, Kenning and Spencer, a family-owned business that have been based in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter for more than 200 years, were chosen as the medal fabricators.

The Jewellery Quarter is included on the Birmingham 2022 marathon route and is just a stone’s throw away from Arena Birmingham, one of the key venues for the Games.

The company also made the adjustable gold, green and blue medal ribbons, which feature a celebratory confetti pattern, in their Bedworth factory.

How many medals are there?

A total of 1875 medals have been produced and will be awarded to the athletes placing first, second and third in the 283 medal events that are part of the Games.

For the first time ever there are more medal events for women than for men.

What are the medals made of?

Unfortunately for the winners, the gold medals are not made of solid gold, but rather a sterling silver core with gold plating.

Both the silver medals and the bronze medals, however, are made of the respective solid metals.

Gold medals were not always the standard prize in major multi-event sporting events like the Commonwealth Games – in the 1896 Olympics, the winner of the games won a silver medal which was at that time more valuable than gold.

The now-traditional trio of preciosu metal medals was introduced for the first time at the 1908 London Olympics.

The last solid gold medals were used at the 1912 Stockholm Olympic Games, but such medals have never been used at the Comm

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