In our in-house artisan workshop, one-of-a-kind creations come to life through exceptional craftsmanship. This year, we are proud to have designed and crafted the trophy for Berlin Open – a prestigious WTA 500 tournament where the world’s top female tennis players compete on the iconic grass courts of Steffi Graf Stadion from 14 to 22 June 2025. The tournament is a key lead-up to Wimbledon and, this year, 17 of the top 18 players will compete.

The new, bespoke Berlin Open trophy will be awarded from 2025 through 2028, and marks our second collaboration on tennis trophies, following the Bad Homburg Open. While each trophy boasts a unique design, both tournaments honour their champions with a bespoke elephant trophy – a symbol of strength, resilience, and enduring craftsmanship.

Each trophy is the culmination of months of dedicated work by our team of expert goldsmiths and designers, who collaborate closely from the first sketch to the final polish. Both trophies showcase a striking, sculptural interpretation of the iconic Elephant, designed by Ole Lynggaard. Every detail is thoughtfully crafted to embody the artistry and spirit of the brand.

The Berlin Open trophy is cast in bronze, and in its trunk, the bronze elephant holds a tennis ball crafted from sterling silver. The figure rests on a concrete base with graffiti-inspired artwork, adding a contemporary touch that nods to Berlin’s urban spirit while also reflecting the history of The Berlin Wall. A silver plate, set into the base, awaits the engraving of the champion’s name. In contrast, the Bad Homburg trophy is cast from a raw piece of brass – also holding a gleaming silver tennis ball in its trunk. Winners and runners-up at both tournaments will receive special edition Elephant pendants, crafted in 18 karat yellow gold. Each pendant features a white gold tennis ball nestled in the elephant’s trunk and a special engraving to celebrate their achievements.

Søren Lynggaard, CEO of OLE LYNGGAARD COPENHAGEN and son of founder Ole Lynggaard, unveils the Berlin Open trophy in Munich. The idea for the trophy, showcasing the brand’s iconic Elephant, was conceived by Søren himself. He will also personally present the trophy, along with special edition Elephant pendants, to the champion and runner-up at the finale.

“Creating the trophy is a very long, meticulous process. First our 3D team in our HQ scanned our beautiful gold elephant. Then we scaled it up to the trophy size. We were surprised to see that it still looked very cute even after the enlargement. The 3D file was sent to a bronze casting specialist. He prints the elephant in plastic and makes a mould of silicone around it. Then he fills the silicone mould with wax. After that, he makes a plaster mould around the wax elephant and then burns out the wax. Then the mould for bronze casting is ready and he casts the elephant in bronze. Then we get the rough bronze elephant back to HQ where our model goldsmith Thomas spends many hours perfecting the bronze statue and mounts the silver tennis ball at the end of the trunk. Finally, it is mounted on a handcrafted wooden cube with a silver plate with engravings secured with homemade silver screws. All in all, we spend months making such a unique trophy.”

Søren Lynggaard

CEO

“It is always very exciting to make these one-offs, especially for us in the development department. It’s the icing on the cake. Over the years, we have crafted everything from window displays to special awards and trophies, and those projects are always fun to be a part of. The Elephant Trophy was a collaboration between departments, starting with the piece of jewellery designed by Ole being turned into something much larger in scale. It’s a big piece, so mounting it and making sure everything fits is an achievement in itself – you anticipate it and can’t wait to see the final result. As a goldsmith, for this type of project, you work with different materials and processes, but many of the tools and techniques are the same, like casting, welding, filing and polishing. The shaping process is especially fun. That we were able to create such a polished surface on this piece was incredible.”

Thomas Lerche

Goldsmith