How to display marathon medals and bibs

The simplest way to display marathon medals is a hanger: a wooden or metal bar with hooks, fixed to the wall, with the medals hanging by their ribbons. If you want the race bib shown together with the medal, use a shadow box. If you would prefer not to have them on the wall, a box in a drawer is fine too. Each option is described below.

A medal hanger

A hanger can hold one medal or a long row of them. You can buy one, or make one from a length of wood with cup hooks screwed into it. Check that the hooks are wide enough for the ribbon to lie flat. A ribbon that hangs folded for a long time can end up creased.

Hang it somewhere you pass often, such as above a desk or in the hallway. Avoid a spot in direct sun, because fabric ribbons can fade.

A row of medals weighs more than you might expect, so fix the bar with screws and wall plugs. Adhesive strips are rated for a stated weight, and a full bar of medals can go over it.

A shadow box with the medal and bib

A shadow box is a deep frame. The object sits inside it and does not press against the glass, which makes it the usual way to show a medal and a race bib together.

1. Measure the medal, including its thickness, and buy a box with enough inside depth. 2. Flatten the bib under a stack of books for a few days. 3. Attach the bib to the backing board with photo corners or acid-free mounting tape. Ordinary tape and glue can discolour over the years. 4. Attach the medal with a few stitches of thread through the ribbon and the backing board, or with a small hook if the board is thick enough to take one. 5. Add a small card with the race, the date and your time if you want them shown.

Frame shops and hobby retailers sell shadow boxes. We do not, and we do not sell medal frames either.

The bib in an ordinary frame

If you only want the bib on the wall, a flat frame is enough. Bibs vary in size, so measure yours and choose a frame with room for a border of card around it. The medal can hang on a hook next to the frame. This costs less than a shadow box, and it is easier to add to after your next race.

A box in a drawer

Plenty of runners do not want medals on the wall. A shallow box with a lid holds the medal and the bib together. Write the race and the year on a card or on the lid. If you do the same for every race, the boxes stack on a shelf.

What to do with twenty medals

A hanger eventually fills up. Some ways to handle that:

• Hang only the races that mean the most to you and box the others.
• Fit a longer bar and sort the medals by year.
• Take a photo of each medal with its bib before it goes in a box, so you have them all in one album.
• Ask your running club or a local school whether they can reuse medals you do not want to keep.

Something to hang next to the medals

A medal says which race you finished. If you also want the route on the wall, that is what we make: a poster drawn from your own recording of the race, from a Strava activity or a GPX, FIT or TCX file, with one to four numbers under it, such as distance, time and pace. It is made from your recording and is not a print of the official course. Distances are in kilometres.

The print comes in 30×40, 50×70 and 70×100 cm. We sell it with or without a frame. The frame is pine with acrylic glazing, in white, black, wood or dark wood, and it has a hanger fitted. The frames page has the details, and the marathon print page shows what the poster looks like. If you plan to frame the poster yourself, read how to frame a route print first.