The competition's entries were highly praised by a panel of sports coaches and specialist judges. Winning concepts ranged from a low-cost golf game for athletes with intellectual disabilities to a para-climbing aid, an enhanced grip interface for wheelchair tennis players, and a robotic training companion.
Gold Award for MATP Golf Game
Under Brief A, students were challenged to develop inclusive products to support the Motor Activities Training Programme (MATP) and Special Olympics training sessions.
Sophia Francis, a Part A Graphic Design student, received a Gold Award for her Golf Game design.
Angela Lydon, MATP National Manager at Special Olympics, praised the project:
"It fits the brief and is absolutely perfect for MATP athletes. The language used in the description shows that they have done their research or teach MATP."
Following the competition, Angela invited the winners to present their designs and prototypes at the Special Olympics National Summer Games, held in Birmingham on 29-30 August 2026.
With support from the School of Design and Creative Arts, Sophia attended the event and produced a working prototype of her Golf Game. The game was enthusiastically received by athletes, coaches and visitors throughout the Games.
Silver Award for Robotic Training Companion
The DOT-S Robotic Companion, designed by Aidan Mathieson, Atilla Yusuf and Robin Healy, all final-year Design students, received a Silver Award.
The judges commented:
"The robot design is good but may be expensive to make and would need to be more robust."
Bronze Awards for Paralympic Training Aids
Under Brief C, students were asked to develop entry-level athlete training aids for Paralympic sports.
Alasdair Donaldson, Head of Para Sport at Loughborough, commended the overall quality of the entries.
The Bronze Award-winning Rimlink, an enhanced grip interface for wheelchair tennis players, was developed by Abishek Senthil Kumar, Elif Tunca, Mingxin Zhang, Shiyang Wang and Ruixuan Zhang, all Master's students on the Integrated Industrial Design (IID) programme.
The judges noted:
"The grip for wheelchair tennis players was intriguing and appears easy to make."
Another Bronze Award was presented to the Adaptive Paraclimbing Assist and Harness System, designed by Jingwei Yu, Youan Guan, Denzel Jen, Xinyu Lyu and Jiayu Wu, also IID Master's students.
The judges remarked:
"The basic concept of an adaptive paraclimbing assist is sound, makes sense and provides a solution to a real problem."
A third Bronze Award recognised the Balance Training Seat for Paralympic Rowing, designed by Zuoping Guan, Willow Tan, Ling Qi, Shaopeng Chen and Jiahao Lin, all from the IID programme.
Judges commented:
"This is a good start addressing a genuine need. Further work is required to understand the needs of different impairment groups and how the product could be integrated more robustly with a rowing machine rather than operating independently."
Gold Awards for Inclusive Cycling Solutions
Under Brief D, students developed accessories for adapted cycling. Judges included Fiona Smith, Beth Douglas and Jane Simpson from Grampian Inclusive Cycling Bothies (GICB).
The Gold Award-winning FreeWheel: Adaptive Braking for Inclusive Cycling, designed by Will Baxter, Wei-Sheng Tu, Ying Teng, Alexander Crasneanscki and Om Shah, all IID Master's students, impressed the judges.
They commented:
"The presentation clearly outlines the design and what it has been designed to do."
Another Gold Award was presented to BrakEase, designed by Dengfeng Zhu, Juntao Hong, Xizhi Wang, Yuxue Ni and Yuhan Cao, also IID Master's students.
The judges noted:
"It could be useful for individuals who do not have the fine motor skills to operate a pull brake lever. It could benefit people who are unable to use conventional brakes while still helping them understand braking and speed control."
Celebration of Sport Wins Public Vote
Under Brief F: Celebration of Sport, students were invited to create a modern interpretation of the original stained-glass windows in the Hazlerigg Building at Loughborough University.
Judging was led by Cath Harvey, Head of Participation and Workforce Development at Loughborough Sport; Lorraine Young, Associate Dean for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in the School of Design and Creative Arts; and Alis Iacob, Director of Postgraduate Studies.
Evelyn Brown, a Part A Graphic Design student, received a Bronze Award for her image design, Celebration of Sport!.
The judges commented:
"The illustration style has worked well and the composition feels balanced. We collectively felt the design was worthy of an award."
Evelyn also won the Public Vote Gold Award for the same design. Although voting was open for only three days, more than 500 votes were cast, demonstrating strong public engagement and support for the competition.
Showcasing Inclusive Design Excellence
The success of ISD2025-26 highlights the creativity and commitment of students in addressing real-world challenges through inclusive design. The competition continues to provide opportunities for emerging designers to work with sports organisations, athletes and community partners to develop innovative solutions that make sport more accessible to all.