Birmingham, Jul 28 (IANS): A symbolic representation of an aerial map of the West Midlands region's road and canal network embossed on them will be a key feature of the gold, silver and bronze medals that will be awarded to the 1,875 medal winners of the 22nd Commonwealth Games starting here on Thursday.

The gold, silver, and bronze medals are being made in Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter and have been designed by three students from the School of Jewellery in Birmingham. The three students -- Amber Alys, Francesca Wilcox and Catarina Rodrigues Caeiro have also designed the ribbons and boxes that will be awarded to the winners along with the medal.

For the exquisite, jewel-like medals, the designers took inspiration from the journey the 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.

The medal and ribbon have been designed with all athletes competing in the 19 sports and eight Para sports in mind. The medal has been created so that it is 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.

In all 1,875 medals are up for grabs across all the sporting events, and for the first time ever in a global, multi-sport event, there are more women's events than men's -- 136 against 134.

Being presented with brilliantly designed medals will definitely add to the joy of the medal winners.