A Bulgarian-born artist based in Glasgow has been chosen to design the official medal for the 2026 Commonwealth Games, with the resulting piece drawing praise for its groundbreaking commitment to accessibility and its deep roots in Scottish civic identity.

Militsa Milenkova, a jeweller and designer affiliated with The Glasgow School of Art, was selected through a competitive process run jointly by the school and Games organisers Glasgow 2026. Her design was unveiled this week at the institution's premises.

The medal departs sharply from convention. Rather than the circular form that has defined sporting prizes for generations, Milenkova's creation takes the shape of a Reuleaux triangle — a curved geometric figure that organisers say has never been used for a Commonwealth Games medal before. The surface features three distinct levels, a deliberate nod to the podium steps on which athletes receive their honours at major championships.

“There are three surface levels representing the podiums that athletes step on to, which is possibly the biggest moment of their lives,” Milenkova said. “I wanted to make inclusion tangible.”

That ambition is most clearly expressed through the medal's Braille and tactile elements, which allow visually impaired athletes and spectators to read and engage with the design through touch. Officials described this as an unprecedented feature for a Commonwealth Games medal.

The piece is steeped in Glaswegian symbolism. The city’s coat of arms provided a central reference point, alongside the Finnieston Crane — an enduring emblem of Glasgow's industrial past — and tartan, woven into the texture of the surface as a nod to Scotland's national heritage. Milenkova, who came to Glasgow from Bulgaria and considers the city her adopted home, said she set out to distil its character into a single object.

“I wanted to try and fit Glasgow into one shape,” she said, adding that the coat of arms emerged naturally as her starting point.

The Games themselves run from July 23 to August 2, with 215 gold medals to be awarded across ten sports and six para sports. The para sport programme is the most extensive in the event's history, with 47 titles available and full integration alongside the mainstream competitive schedule — a context that lends the medal's inclusive design particular resonance.

George Black, Chair of Glasgow 2026, said the piece was “rooted in Glasgow's story, bold in its design and meaningful in its commitment to inclusion,” while swimmer Duncan Scott, Scotland's most decorated athlete, gave it an enthusiastic reception on first viewing, calling the shape “really cool” and describing the Braille as “a nice touch.”

The medal forms part of a wider creative programme that has drawn heavily on local talent, including a bespoke Games tartan by designer Siobhan Mackenzie and 74 King's Batons, which will travel across the Commonwealth before arriving at the opening ceremony.