- Concern had been expressed about the poor quality of medals at the Games.
- American star Nyjah Huston was one of the first to reveal the problems.
More than 100 disgruntled athletes have returned their Olympic medals just five months after the 2024 Paris Games due to damage and rust, according to a new report.
Concerns about the poor quality of the medals handed out by Paris organizers arose during last year's event, when American skater Nyjah Huston went viral after revealing the shocking condition of the bronze he won in the French capital.
Several other athletes then shared images of their medals rapidly deteriorating, including Team USA stars Nick Itkin and Ilona Maher.
Last month, two French Olympic athletes became the latest to publicly complain about the state of their prized gongs.
Clement Secchi and Yohann Ndoye-Brouard took to social media to reveal the sorry state of their own bronze medals they won together in the 4×100 meter medley relay.
And a report from the French newspaper. The letter He now claims that the number of athletes who have returned their medals to Paris organizers has surpassed the 100 mark.
Nyjah Huston shared the shocking status of her bronze medal days after the Olympics
Houston's bronze medal in Paris began to chip after her celebrations in the United States.
French swimmer Clement Secchi shared a photo of his medal last month along with the caption “crocodile skin.”
The publication also reports that the management of the company that produced the medals, Monnaie de Paris, has been fired due to the problem.
It has been claimed that the problems arose due to a ban on the use of a component in the medals and a lack of time for testing.
Houston shared an image of the medal she won just 10 days after her event at last year's Games. He said: “Okay, so these Olympic medals look great when they're new, but after letting them sit on my skin with a little sweat for a while and then letting my friends wear them over the weekend, apparently they don't. “They are.” as high quality as you would think,” he said.
'I mean, look at that thing. It has a complicated appearance. Even the front. It's starting to peel a little. So yeah, I don't know, Olympic medals, maybe you have to improve the quality a little bit.”
British diver Yasmin Harper also revealed her medal was showing signs of deterioration a week after winning bronze with partner Scarlett Mew Jensen in the women's 3m synchronized springboard diving.
“There have been some little blemishes,” said Harper, who won Britain's first medal at the Games.
“I think it's water or something getting under the metal, causing it to discolor a little, but I'm not sure.”
The medals were designed by French luxury jeweler Chaumet and are set with a piece of iron taken from the Eiffel Tower during its renovation in the 20th century.
Another French Olympian, Yohann Ndoye-Brouard, posted his own rusty bronze medal in X
The Paris 2024 medals contain a portion of the Eiffel Tower as a nod to the host city, but the exact composition of the medals varies between Olympic Games.
Gold medals are made primarily of silver with a gold coating. Bronze medals are usually a mixture of copper, zinc and tin.
Bronze naturally oxidizes when exposed to air and moisture. How quickly bronze degrades depends on the proportion of metals in the alloy, although cheaper metals often speed up the process.
The International Olympic Committee told Mail Sport: “The Paris 2024 Olympic Games Organizing Committee is working closely with the Monnaie de Paris, the institution in charge of medal production and quality control, to assess any issues with the medals. to understand the circumstances and cause of any damage.
'Damaged medals will be systematically replaced by the Monnaie de Paris and engraved identically to the originals.
'The process to provide substitutes should begin in the coming weeks in a process managed by Paris 2024 and Monnaie de Paris, together with the national Olympic committees of the interested athletes. Paris 2024 is in contact with the relevant national Olympic committees.'