Organisers of the TCS Sydney Marathon admitted an “unfortunate error” after the event’s finisher medal was unveiled with Munich’s Allianz Arena engraved where Sydney’s Allianz Stadium should appear. The medal’s landmarks side otherwise features the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House, and the organisers revealed the design in an Instagram post ahead of the race on 30 August. The reverse of the double-sided medal is an indigo and gold design by First Nations artist Ambrose Killian representing kilometres of the course and the eight global major marathons; Killian said he was not involved in the stadium engraving. The mistake was flagged by the BBC and running blogs, and the Allianz Arena account responded in comments, “Oh wow, we didn’t have that on our bingo card!” Organisers called the piece “a beautiful medal, and now a little more unique” and said their focus remains delivering a safe, spectacular weekend; about 35,000 runners from more than 120 countries competed in the race’s first year as a World Marathon Major in 2025.
