Something strange is afoot at the Olympic Village. And no, this time it isn’t the muffins.
Just as they did at the last Olympics in 2021, the beds that the world’s best athletes sleep on when they’re not training for competing at the games have gone viral.
According to Forbes, the whole thing started in 2021 when American track and field runner Paul Chelimo tweeted that the beds at the Village—which are made of recycled cardboard—were “aimed at avoiding intimacy among athletes.”
Chelimo claimed, “Beds will be able to withstand the weight of a single person to avoid situations beyond sports.”
However, the allegation was quickly debunked “on social media by athletes, who posted videos of themselves jumping on the beds to prove their durability.”
That didn’t stop the rumor from making a comeback for this year’s games, however. And while the “anti-sex” rumors were yet again dispelled many athletes were “not impressed by the quality of said mattresses.”
No good night’s sleep
“According to many of the athletes, the beds aren’t particularly comfy, sparking concerns that a bad night’s sleep could affect their performance; some have taken matters into their own hands and purchased mattress covers.”
United States women’s volleyball team member and gold medalist Chiaka Ogbogu decided (along with a few of her fellow championship teammates) to investigate the matter firsthand. In a video posted to her TikTok account one week ago, she revealed what the mattresses were really made of.
The TikTok currently has 225,100 views and counting.
The video caption reads, “Was I the last to know this info?!!!! They weren’t lying when they said this is the most sustainable Olympics ever!”
In it, Ogbogu’s teammates can be seen dismantling one of their room’s mattresses. Obgobu can be heard saying, “In case you were wondering what these mattresses were actually made of?”
“My mind is blown,” she says as the mattress innards are revealed to be a thick honeycomb of milky white plastic fiber.
“It’s plastic!” Ogbogu exclaims. A teammate responds, “Optics are bad.”
“You can change the setting so that’s nice,” Ogbogu states, apparently commenting on a foam mattress pad that sits atop the plastic mattress cushions.
The comfort issue is just another point of contention that athletes have made about the games’ treatment of athletes this year.
The Daily Dot has reached out to the International Olympic Committee via email for a statement.
@chiakaogbogu_ Was I the last to know this info?!!!! They weren’t lying when they said this is the most sustainable Olympics ever!🤯 #olympicvilla #olympicvillage #parisolympics #olympicbeds ♬ original sound – Chiaka Ogbogu
Viewers weigh in
“Is it comfortable tho??” Manda C. (@amandaleeann_) asks in the comments. Ogbogu replies, “Haha no.”
“Literally what my dog’s outdoor bedding material is made of too…” another viewer points out.
Another viewer asked, “Did whatever ya did make it better?” Unfortunately, Ogbogu replied, “lol no.”
Another commented, “Why do they treat it like a summer camp and not like these are OLYMPIANS.”
The Daily Dot has reached out to Ogbogu via TikTok and Instagram messenger for further comment.
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