Custom Relay Medals That Celebrate the Team

A relay is the most team-driven race there is — legs, baton exchanges, and a shared finish. The medal should reflect that unity: interlocking team pieces, a shared ribbon design, or a medal that names every leg. We build relay medals that make the whole team feel like finishers. Explore the full race medals collection for team events.

Relays run from corporate 5K relays to ultra-distance team events. We design the family from one identity — shared shape, shared ribbon — with per-leg or per-team variants sized and plated to the effort.

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Custom Relay Race medal produced by MedalOrigin

Why Relay Race Medals From the Factory Floor

Relay medals are about the team, not just the individual. We design awards that show it — interlocking multi-piece medals, a shared ribbon across legs, and finisher data that can name the team or the leg. See the race medals overview or plan the build in the design guide.

Most relay medals run 64–89mm with soft or hard enamel and a shared ribbon design. Multi-piece builds let each leg be a standalone medal that combines into the team emblem — a powerful driver of team registration.

Design Detail

Product Samples

What Makes the Medal Worth Training For

After 15 years producing medals for races from 200-runner local events to 40,000-runner city majors, these are the factors that separate the medals runners keep from the ones that end up in a drawer.

Interlocking Team Pieces

A relay is the natural fit for a medal that separates into leg pieces reassembling into the team emblem. Each piece is a standalone medal with its own ribbon; the full team builds the complete image. This drives team registration and repeat entries.

Shared Ribbon Across Legs

One ribbon design ties every leg's medal to the same event — a visual signal that the team finished together. Standard 860–900mm × 20–25mm, full-color printed with the relay name and date, included in the quote.

Team & Leg Finisher Data

We import the timing file and can engrave the team name, leg, and split times on each medal. The laser exposes bright zinc for permanent contrast. A 5–10 piece proof run is included before full production.

Distance Tiers in One Family

Short corporate relays and long ultra relays share a team identity with different sizes and platings. Each is its own mold at its own 100-piece minimum; fix the shape and later tiers become low-cost amendments.

Quick Specs — Technical Reference

Specification	Standard	Options / Upgrade
Material	Zinc alloy	Brass for weight
Size	64–89mm by event	Per-leg pieces smaller
Special builds	Multi-piece interlocking	Adds cost, boosts team pride
Enamel	Soft or hard enamel	Team-color Pantone matched
Finisher data	Team or leg name engraving	CSV from timing company
Ribbon	Shared design across legs	860–900mm × 20–25mm
MOQ	100 per design	Steps at 300 / 1,000
Production	7–15 days after sample	Rush available

Size & Quantity Planning by Distance

A practical starting point for sizing medals and ribbons by distance. We fine-tune sizes and quantities in your free design.

Race distance	Recommended size	Typical plating	Ribbon	Quantity tip
Corporate 5K relay	64–76mm	Nickel or gold	860–900mm × 20mm	Team award
Standard relay	76–89mm	Gold	860–900mm × 25mm	Standard finisher
Per-leg piece	44–64mm	Mixed per leg	Shared design	Interlocking set
Ultra team relay	89–102mm	Antique gold	900mm × 30mm	Flagship heft
Kids relay	44–51mm	Nickel or painted	800mm × 20mm	Child-safe

Customization Options — Features That Make Your Medal Unforgettable

Spinning Center Element

A compass, gear, or race logo that rotates 360 degrees independently from the outer medal body. The spinner uses a precision rivet post for smooth, durable rotation — popular for races with a journey or navigation theme. Adds roughly 30–50% per-unit cost due to the second mold piece and assembly labor.

Bottle Opener Function

A stainless steel opener insert riveted into the medal body — our most popular add-on for race medals. The post-race celebration accessory built right into the award. Insert style is more durable than integrated edge style and keeps the medal's aesthetic integrity.

Multi-Piece Interlocking

Two or three separate medals that fit together to form one larger image — ideal for race series spanning multiple events or a challenge combining different distances. Each piece is a standalone medal with its own ribbon. When assembled they reveal a complete design that drives series registration.

LED Illumination

A flashing LED embedded behind translucent enamel makes your race logo or skyline glow — unforgettable at evening award ceremonies and popular for night runs. The CR2032 battery is integrated and replaceable. Requires minimum 5–6mm medal thickness; tested for 48+ hours of continuous illumination.

Dual-Plating Two-Tone

Gold body with nickel (silver) skyline highlights, or silver body with rose gold landmark elements. Masking during plating allows two metallic finishes on one medal. Small per-unit surcharge, large perceptual payoff for medals with distinct foreground and background elements.

Custom Packaging

Beyond the standard poly bag: velvet pouches in your race colors, gift boxes with custom-cut foam inserts, acrylic display cases for age-group winners, or custom-printed card backing with race branding. Each option is quoted separately based on quantity.

Finish & Packaging

Relay Race medal finish detail — Relay Race medal — 3D die-cast relief, Pantone enamel and plating detail

Factory-Direct — What That Actually Means for Your Race

No Middleman Markup

Every medal goes from our Huizhou factory directly to your race — no distributor, no promotional-products middleman, no awards shop marking it up 2–3 times. Your per-unit price reflects actual manufacturing cost plus reasonable margin, which is why race directors who order 500+ medals annually switch to us and stay.

Consistent Year-Over-Year Quality

Your mold, Pantone enamel formulations, ribbon design files, and plating specifications are all archived. When you reorder next year, we retrieve everything — same detail, same color accuracy, same ribbon feel, same weight in hand. Race directors ordering 5+ consecutive years confirm batch-to-batch consistency is why they stay.

Never Missed a Race Date — 15 Years, Zero Late Deliveries

Mold making, die-casting, polishing, plating, enamel filling, laser engraving, ribbon production, assembly, QC, packaging — all 12 steps happen under our roof. In 15 years we have never missed a client's race date. We build buffer into every schedule; your medals arrive before packet pickup. Guaranteed.

Die-cast vs stamped vs acrylic medals

Three production routes, three very different finisher medals. Here is how they compare.

Feature	Die-Cast (Zinc)	Stamped (Brass/Iron)	Acrylic
Process	Molten zinc injected into a steel mold at 385°C	Sheet metal struck between dies	Laser-cut and printed sheet
3D relief	Deep sculptural relief, from 0.4mm minimum detail	Shallow raised or recessed, flat overall	Flat, print only — no relief
Detail	Highest — skylines, portraits, fine texture	Moderate — line logos and text	Graphic print, no dimension
Weight & feel	Hefty and premium	Lighter	Lightweight
Best for	Marquee finisher medals	Budget or basic medals	Lightweight, colorful events
Relative cost	Higher	Lower	Lower

Factory-direct medals — by the numbers

15+

Years making race medals

30,000+

Medals produced per day

50+

Countries shipped

100

MOQ per design

385°C

Zinc die-casting

Electroplating steps

Certifications: ISO 9001, BSCI, Sedex, Reach, RoHS, Disney-approved supplier.

Medal Order Planning Matrix — Quantity, Mold & Lead Time by Event Size

Every race distance is its own production run — its own mold, its own 100-piece minimum, its own plating schedule. This is how a race director plans the whole event family without paying for tooling twice.

Event size	Typical quantity	Molds needed	Unit-price tier	Production window
Local 5K / fun run	100–300 finishers	1 mold (one distance)	Base tier at 100; steps down at 300	7–15 days after sample approval
Half marathon + 5K	300–1,500 finishers	2 molds (one per distance)	300–1,000 tier per design	7–15 days, two runs sequenced
Full marathon	1,000–5,000 finishers	1–2 molds (finisher + age-group)	1,000–5,000 tier	10–15 days; parallel laser stations
Ultra / championship series	500–2,000 across distances	2–4 molds (distance family)	1,000+ tier per design	12–15 days; schedule by distance
Multi-city race series	2,000–10,000 total	Shared shape family, one mold per city	5,000+ tier	Staggered 2–4 weeks by city

Defect Library — Symptom, Cause, Prevention

The faults worth knowing before you approve a sample are the ones that appear in the metal, not in the artwork.

Symptom	Likely cause	How it is prevented
Flow lines on the face	Cavity not polished enough, low machine pressure, or shot fired too fast	Mold polishing schedule and pressure set per part; first-off inspection after casting
Porosity / pinholes	Mold not venting properly	Vent channels cut and checked before the run; samples inspected under magnification
Short fill at sharp corners	Pressure too low for that section	Gate and pressure tuned at sampling; corners radiused at the artwork stage
Plating blisters	Parts not cleaned before the bath, or sealing oil baked before fully dry	Cleaning and full-dry check before plating; tunnel-oven schedule fixed at 100°C / 40 min
Enamel colour bleeding	Fill area below the minimum (0.3 mm soft / 0.5 mm hard)	Artwork thickened at the proof stage; Pantone matched before production
Ribbon print misregistration	Artwork not set up with bleed and fold allowance	Print file checked against the 4-fold construction before the run

Explore related medals & guides

Race Medals Overview All 15 race types we make Sports Medals Tournament and league awards Event Medals Corporate and festival awards Medal Design Guide Multi-piece planning Medal Ribbons Shared ribbon designs Medal Materials Guide Zinc, brass, iron Bulk Custom Medals Volume pricing

Relay Race Medal FAQ — Answers From the Factory Floor

Can you make a relay medal with interlocking leg pieces?

Yes. Multi-piece interlocking medals — one per leg that reassemble into the team emblem — are a signature relay build. Each piece has its own ribbon; collecting them builds the complete image and drives team registration.

Can the ribbon be shared across legs?

Yes. One ribbon design ties every leg's medal to the same event — a clear visual that the team finished together. Full-color printing is included in the quote.

Can you engrave team and leg names?

Yes. We import the timing file and laser-engrave team name, leg, and split times, with a 5–10 piece proof run before full production.

What size for a corporate vs ultra relay?

Corporate 5K relay 64–76mm, standard relay 76–89mm, ultra team relay 89–102mm. Per-leg pieces run 44–64mm within an interlocking set.

What is the MOQ and lead time?

100 pieces per design, unit price stepping down at volume. Production 7–15 days after sample approval; rush options with in-stock molds.

Can we match our team colors?

Yes — every enamel color is Pantone-matched to your team or event colors. Two-tone plating can separate legs visually.

Start Your Relay Race Medals Project

Tell us about your event — the distance, the location, and how many finishers you expect. We will create a free custom design with 3D renderings and a detailed line-item quote within 24 hours. No obligation.

Prefer to browse first? Explore medal materials, see our 12-step manufacturing process, or review our design guide.

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