Design versions

Why a medal design is locked once medals are made with it, and how saving creates a new version.

A medal is a signed record, so it must always look the way it did when it was issued. Breaktape keeps every design in numbered versions. Once medals are made with a version, that version is locked and never changes. Your edits go into a new version instead.

Draft and locked versions

Each design has one or more versions, shown in the Versions box on the design's page and as a badge on the Medal designs list.

Draft: no medals have been made with it yet. Saving changes it in place. The box says "You're editing version 1. No medal has been issued with it yet."
Locked: medals have been made with it, shown with a padlock and the date it was locked. It can't be changed.

A version locks as soon as Breaktape starts making medals with it, which is when draft medals are prepared after you approve a results file. Sending a test medal or seeing the real medal doesn't lock anything.

Saving creates a new version

When the version you're editing is locked, the box says so, and the save button changes to Save version with the next number, for example Save version 2.

Make your changes in the medal builder.
Select Save version 2.
You'll see "Saved as version 2. Medals already issued keep the design they were made with."

Keep editing and saving: version 2 stays a draft, and each save updates it, until medals are made with it.

Which version is used

A race always uses the latest saved version of the design you chose for it. Each version in the Versions box shows which years' medals it was used for, such as "2026 medals", or "Not used yet".

Medals already issued keep their version for good. Their pages, images and verification never change.
Medals made from now on use the latest version. That includes replacement medals made when you correct a result, so a corrected medal shows your current design.

Example

Priya Shah's team issued their 10k medals with version 1 in April. In May they add a sponsor to the ribbon and save, which makes version 2. The April medals still look exactly as they did. The summer 5k, using the same design, gets version 2.

Good to know

You can't go back to an earlier version or delete one. To start again from a different look, make a new design with New design and copy an existing one.
If you want a race to keep its look while you change the design for other races, copy the design first and choose the copy for the other races.
Saving a new version doesn't send or change anything for finishers.
Renaming a design doesn't create a new version. The name is just for your team.

Still stuck?

Email support@breaktape.com and tell us which guide you were reading.