They are among the most prized possessions in sport, yet embarrassingly for Olympic officials the medals in Milano Cortina keep breaking.
On Monday organisers promised to launch an investigation into why it was happening after Winter Olympic medallists, including the American downhill skiing champion Breezy Johnson, reported chipped, cracked and damaged medals.
Johnson’s medal broke shortly after the podium ceremony on Saturday when she was celebrating. “I was jumping up and down in excitement, then it just fell off,” she told reporters, before showing her cracked and chipped medal in one hand as the separated ribbon hung around her neck.
The Sweden cross‑country skier Ebba Andersson reported that her medal “fell in the snow and broke in two”, before adding: “Now I hope the organisers have a ‘plan B’ for broken medals.”
The Germany biathlete Justus Strelow has also said that his bronze medal cracked and fell on the floor during celebrations, while the US figure skater Alysa Liu posted on Instagram that the ribbon had come off her team gold medal.
Asked on Monday about the issue during a press conference, the Milano Cortina chief games operations officer, Andrea Francisi, said: “We are fully aware of the situation and you have seen the pictures. We are looking into what exactly the problem is.
“We will pay maximum attention to the medals. So that everything will be perfect because this is one of the most important things for the athletes.”
Organisers have since suggested that the problem may stem from the medal’s cord, which is fitted with a breakaway mechanism required by law. The system is designed to release automatically if pulled with force, preventing the wearer from being choked.
There were similar issues with the Paris 2024 Olympic medals, with more than 200 requests for replacements – roughly 4% of those awarded.
