Adé Hogue
In 2021, we worked with the amazing artist and North Carolina native, Adé Hogue who took our medal and participant shirt to the next level. He was based in Chicago, IL, but had ties to the Queen City as a UNC Charlotte alum and it showed in his design work. He wasn’t only an absolutely amazing artist, but he also brought life to the active community through running and cycling. Needless to say, he was an easy candidate to kick off our artist series.
In October of 2021, weeks after our race, Adé passed away in a tragic cycling accident. Since that day, we have been searching for a way to pay tribute to him and his legacy. He was a dear friend of the ATC10K team and will forever be a part of the Charlotte running community. We plan to continue our Artist Series in his honor for many years to come by working with friends at his agency and within the lettering community.
Adé’s Artist Series will welcome new artists each year to continue his legacy by designing our race swag. All funds raised for those that opt out of a medal each year will go toward the Adé Hogue Foundation. The foundation focuses on providing funding to various areas such as the educational pursuits of fellow creatives, the athletic pursuits of those within the Black cycling and running communities, and supporting underprivileged youth.
The 2026 Around the Crown 10K Together with Truist brand by Chelsea Mister
This year we’re proud to say that we’re headed back to the designer that started it all, Chelsea Mister. Chelsea created the original brand of Around the Crown 10K back in 2019 and has been leading our creative direction ever since. As co-founder of this race, she’s stepped in from time to time to craft merchandise designs, but it’s been a while since she had the full autonomy to lay out our brand for the year. In 2026 we get to see her really flex her creative muscles with the shirt, medal, bib, NoDa beer can, and so much more.
The shirt
Recover returns as the Official Shirt Sponsor for 2026, delivering another premium participant experience with their signature sustainable apparel. Every registered runner will receive Recover’s incredibly soft Eco Tee, crafted from 60% post-industrial cotton and 40% post-consumer recycled plastic bottles. It’s a shirt built to last—combining everyday comfort, durability, and sustainability into a tee you’ll keep reaching for long after race day.
Looking for a technical upgrade? This year we’re once again offering the Sport Elite Long Sleeve in an exclusive custom ATC10K tan color. Featuring a lightweight micro-waffle knit, moisture-wicking performance, fast-drying fabric, and four-way stretch, it’s designed to move effortlessly from race day to training runs while showcasing this year’s design.
If you’ve already registered, you can upgrade to the long sleeve here, but you only have until Friday, July 10th!
The design
Let’s dive into this year’s race shirt designed by Chelsea. The hand drawn illustration captures a perspective that only runners get to experience one day a year when Charlotte’s inner beltway is open to runners. The featured overpass is around mile 2.75 of the new course, where the light rail passes overhead. It’s a view most people only ever see through a windshield. When you’re covering the same stretch of the highway at the pace of your feet, not your car, you notice details that would otherwise be a blur. The architecture, the steelwork, the scale; it all becomes part of the experience.
That idea became the inspiration behind this year’s theme: Five is Greater Than Fifty.
For a few hours, Charlotte flips the script of movement on the I-277. The 50 mph speed limit gives way to thousands of runners moving at roughly 5 mph, proving that slowing down actually helps you see more. It’s a reminder that some of the city’s most memorable views aren’t found from behind the wheel, they are earned one step at a time.
The 2025 Around the Crown 10K Together with Truist brand by Kim Hall
For 2025, we’re bringing our Artist Series back home to Charlotte with a brand new designer, Kim Hall. Kim took us back to our creative roots with one of the first artists the ATC10K fam ever worked with – before running on a highway was even a thing. She has been a landmark designer in and around Charlotte for more than a decade. You may know her work from her tenured stay at Whitewater Center, the Turkey Trot’s new medal designs in 2024, or some classic beer labels around the Queen City. On top of all that, she also worked with Recover helping tap into any and every industry interested in sustainable tees! We’re beyond humbled to finally get to work with this amazing creative/runner/human/mom.
Once again we’re back in action with Recover‘s classic blend on their charcoal Eco Tee made from 60% post-industrial cotton and 40% post-consumer plastic. The Eco Tee is exceptionally soft, durable, and sustainable with the unique Recover combination of comfort and performance. We’ve also added an upgraded option with the Sport Elite long-sleeve tech tee, and this year we’ve added our own navy with that ATC10K custom color! Featuring micro waffle knit technology, Sport Elite dries fast, wicks moisture, and drapes perfectly with the right amount of stretch to keep its shape while providing full range of motion.
Kim used her classic style, blending the clean colors we know and love alongside her adventurous typography. She brought in our newest favorite motto – ONE HILL OF A GOOD TIME. This phrase comes from that little bump on I-277 along the northern part of the highway where you get to conquer the Queen’s Climb. We first used this on our Hype Team shirt’s last year and we’re excited to see you rock it all around the Queen City in 2025.
Beyond the race shirt, you’ll also see Kim’s design on this year’s medal, race bib, Jogger Lager from NoDa Brewing, and a merch piece or two! We can’t wait to watch all of you have such a hill of a good time and tell the world about it when you wear your race shirt!
The 2024 Around the Crown 10K Together with Truist branding compliments of Alxndr
In 2024 our artist series took us a bit further north as we met alxndr, an illustrator, designer, and most importantly runner, out of St. Paul, Minnesota! We met this amazing artist through searching endlessly on design websites where his work continued to bubble to the top anytime we were searching for running related merch, medals, design, anything! When we found out he worked for Twin Cities In Motion who puts on some of the many races we have always looked up to, we were sold.
Alxndr got to work fast on our design and his style bled through so well with icons relating to our beloved city and state while also emphasizing the ATC brand. The 2024 medal, shirt, merch, and NoDa beer can showcases his take on our classic crown that is the capstone of our brand while his icons pull his playful line-work throughout the ribbon. We are proud for this year’s medal to be the first that takes our design “outside the box” with the edges of our brand pushing past our traditional circular medal. You will also see his work on the front and back of our 2024 participant shirt as well as a few merchandise items this year.
Jogger Lager from NoDa Brewing
This is our 6th iteration of the Jogger Lager can and may be our favorite thanks to the creative talent and love for can artwork from alxndr! North Carolina’s state bird and flower, the cardinal and the flowering dogwood are the main attractions to this pint of goodness. As always, the team over at NoDa Brewing knocked it out of the park with this crisp, clean, and easy drinking lager. Since this one is brewed for runners, by runners, it’s the perfect beer to celebrate your new PR, a run on a highway, or just a jog up to the bar. You’ll be able to snag this one during race week at the tap room starting Wednesday, 8/28 when we join their run club to shake those legs out. Depending on what option you chose during registration, you’ll also get a can at the expo or on tap at their North End taproom at the after party!
The 2023 Around the Crown 10K Together with Truist medal
We’re excited to debut the 2023 Around the Crown 10K Together with Truist medal thanks to our partnership with Marina Nolen this year! The inspiration derived from her original 3D sketch of Charlotte’s beautiful skyline and downtown created for the 2023 shirt. You can see the skyline in top of the neck ribbon behind the iconic ATC10K Crown, but the emphasis really goes to the unique “runners of Charlotte”. From handcycles to hairstyles, Marina focused on inclusion within our amazing community.
Once again, we went with an antiqued gold finish as a nod to our city’s history in the gold rush during the early 1800’s. The back of the medal brought Marina’s hand lettering to our motto, “WE RUN THIS CROWN” along with the clouds that surrounded uptown’s architecture. The date was etched in to help you commemorate year five of opening up the Queen City’s inner beltway, I-277, to thousands of runners.
The 2022 Around the Crown 10K presented by Truist medal
The 2022 Around the Crown 10K presented by Truist medal was a beautiful one! The lines of this design were inspired by the many layers of overpasses and underpasses that you’ll experience on race day. The type literally goes #AroundTheCrown of the medal with the ATC10K crown itself being the centerpiece of your new collectible.
