From concept to reality: Pilar Barbadillo's Dakar 2026 medal design reaches the podium

What began as a chance discovery hearing about an international design competition has taken Spanish designer Pilar Barbadillo Vicario all the way to the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games (YOG). Watching the young athletes in Dakar receiving the medals she designed, Pilar felt as if she was truly part of the moment. “I feel as if I had won one of those medals myself. Athletes express themselves through sport, and for me, it's art,” she said.

For Pilar Barbadillo Vicario, the moment her medal design truly came to life was not when she won the international competition. It was when she saw a young athlete wearing it.

“I think the medal only has meaning the moment they are wearing it. Before, it's just my picture,” she told Olympics.com after attending the first swimming medal ceremonies at Dakar 2026.

The 27-year-old Spanish designer was in Senegal at the invitation of the IOC, experiencing first-hand how a drawing she had created thousands of kilometres away had become part of the first Olympic sporting event held on African soil.

Among the athletes she met was Ecuadorian swimmer Elvira Espinosa, the first gold medallist of Dakar 2026. For Pilar, seeing the medal around an athlete's neck gave new meaning to the hours spent developing her design.

As she explained, each medal represents far more than the moment of victory. It embodies the dedication of the athletes and the support of the coaches, families and others who helped them along the way.

Pilar's visit also brought her face to face with some familiar figures from the Olympic Movement.

At the Youth Olympic Village in Diamniadio, she met IOC President Kirsty Coventry, who presented her with a set of the medals she helped create.

She also met fellow Spaniard and IOC Member Pau Gasol, the two-time Olympic basketball silver medallist, who later reflected on their encounter on social media: “We don’t always stop to think about the people behind the things we see. Today I met Pilar, the designer behind the #Dakar2026 medal. And she’s Spanish too!”

But perhaps one of the most personal moments came in Saly, where Pilar travelled to watch the Spanish athletes competing in rowing coastal beach sprints, a discipline making its Youth Olympic debut.

There, she watched Spain secure silver and bronze medals, seeing athletes from her home country celebrate their achievements with her design around their necks.

It was another reminder of how her artwork has become part of the athletes' own Olympic journeys.​

The journey began almost by accident.

While researching another project, Pilar came across the medal design from the Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games. Intrigued, she learned about the competition for Dakar 2026 and decided to enter.

“I started investigating, found out about the contest and (I thought), ‘I can do it!’.” she recalled in an interview with Olympics.com.

Her submission, The Roar of Youth, was eventually selected from entries submitted from 103 countries.

Inspired by Senegalese culture and the Olympic values, the design features a lion – symbolising strength and courage – with two faces incorporated into its mane to represent fairness and respect. The reverse of the medal, created through a separate Senegalese competition, features the baobab tree, a symbol of wisdom, longevity and the passing on of knowledge between generations.

Together, the two sides connect Senegal's cultural heritage with the ambitions of a new generation.

When her winning design was first announced, Pilar compared the experience to winning a medal herself.

“Right now, I feel as if I had won one of those medals myself. Athletes express themselves through sport, and for me, it's art. Knowing that young athletes will wear a medal with my design is just incredible.”

Now, having watched that moment unfold in Senegal, she sees the connection between art and sport in a new light.

And while her visit to Dakar has come to an end, her design will continue to accompany young athletes on the podium throughout the Games, becoming part of their achievements and memories long after the competitions are over.