Wednesday, 11 February 2026

2026 Winter Olympics broken medals: Milan-Cortina organisers look into matter

Weirdness Level5/10

๐ŸŒ€ Pretty Weird

2026 Winter Olympics broken medals: Milan-Cortina organisers look into matter

โ€œThe 2026 Winter Olympics medals are literally falling apart, with German biathlon bronze medalists watching their hardware hit the hotel floor mid-celebration. Milan-Cortina organizers are looking into why their supposedly premium medals have the structural integrity of chocolate coins. This continues a proud Olympic tradition of dodgy medals, following Paris 2024 where 220 athletes had to request replacements for tarnishing bling that could not even survive a podium ceremony without looking like garage sale finds.โ€

๐Ÿ‘ฝ

Why It's Weird

These are the stories that make you question whether reality has become deliberately surreal. While the weirdness score is more modest, the story still offers a fascinating glimpse into life's unexpected moments.

Milan-Cortina 2026 organisers say they are giving "maximum attention" to why Olympic medals are breaking after several athletes experienced issues with theirs.

Two of the USA's gold medallists, Breezy Johnson and Alysa Liu, revealed the ribbon had come away from the medal soon after they received their prize.

Johnson, who won gold in the women's downhill alpine skiing, showed her broken medal at the post-event media conference.

"So there's the medal. And there's the ribbon," she told reporters. "And here's the little piece that is supposed to go into the ribbon to hold the medal, and yeah, it came apart."

Liu disclosed a similar issue in a video on social media, external after she won gold as part of the United States squad in the figure skating team event.

The video shows Liu holding up the medal and ribbon in separate hands, with the text: "My medal don't need the ribbon."

Dramatic or distracting? Olympic drone footage catches the eye

Published4 days agoDay-by-day guide to the Winter Olympics

Published3 hours agoWinter Olympics 2026 medal table

The issue also befell the German team who won bronze in the biathlon. An Instagram video, external shows the medal falling from the ribbon of one of the athletes as they jumped up and down in celebration at the team hotel.

Andrea Francisi, Milan-Cortina 2026 chief Games operations officer, said the organisers are investigating the issue.

"We are fully aware of the situation," Francisi said. "We are looking into exactly what the problem is.

"We are going to pay maximum attention to the medals, and obviously this is something we want to be perfect when the medal is handed over because this is one of the most important moments for the athletes."

A United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee spokesperson told BBC Sport they are waiting for organisers to resolve the issue.

It has not yet been confirmed whether athletes will receive replacement medals.

This is not the first time the quality of medals awarded at Olympic Games has been called into question.

As of February 2025, a total of 220 requests have been made to replace medals won at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games because of wear and tear.

Diver Yasmin Harper, who won Team GB's first medal of the 2024 Games, was among the athletes to notice her medal was showing signs of "tarnishing".

Paris 2024 organisers said any damaged medals would be replaced.

Watch on iPlayerListen on SoundsWatch two live streams and highlights on BBC iPlayer (UK only), updates on BBC Radio 5 Live and live text commentary and video highlights on the BBC Sport website and app.

How does this make you feel?

๐Ÿ“ฑ

Get Oddly Enough on iOS

Your daily dose of the world's weirdest, most wonderful news. Curated by AI, loved by humans.

Download on the App Store

You might also like ๐Ÿ‘€

Cowboys, lassos, and nudity: AI startups turn to stunts for attention in a crowded market
๐Ÿ‘ฝHuh

Cowboys, lassos, and nudity: AI startups turn to stunts for attention in a crowded market

AI startups are getting so desperate for attention that one hired a cowboy to literally lasso Wall Street's bull while handing out branded stress balls. Another CEO stripped to gym shorts onstage to demonstrate that big AI models are "naked" and need better protection. With 90,000 AI companies worldwide all promising to automate your lunch order, apparently the only way to stand out is full-blown corporate performance art.

The Guardianยท
๐ŸŒ€
8
Norwegian Company Offers Free GTA 6 to Babies Born on Launch Day in Wildest Marketing Stunt Yet
๐Ÿ‘ฝHuh

Norwegian Company Offers Free GTA 6 to Babies Born on Launch Day in Wildest Marketing Stunt Yet

A Norwegian electronics retailer has promised free copies of GTA 6 to any parents whose baby arrives exactly on the game launch date โ€” November 19th. Komplett apparently thinks timing your pregnancy around a video game release is excellent family planning. Their cheeky Instagram campaign encourages couples to "start the mission" now for a November payoff, seemingly oblivious to the cosmic irony of giving new parents a time-consuming game when they will have zero time to play it. One Reddit user summed it up perfectly: getting a newborn and a new GTA on the same day is like winning the lottery and losing the ticket simultaneously.

Euro Weekly Newsยท
๐ŸŒ€
8
Watch: Serial underwear thief at New Zealand school identified as cat
๐Ÿ‘ฝHuh

Watch: Serial underwear thief at New Zealand school identified as cat

A New Zealand school spent over a year hunting for a mysterious thief stealing towels, shoes, and underwear from their pool area. Security cameras finally caught the culprit in action: a black cat dragging a towel across the playground with a secret stash hidden behind the PE shed. The school is now calling their feline felon "Slinky Malinki" and planning to write stories about their very own cat burglar.

UPIยท
๐ŸŒ€
9
Olympic ski jumpers cause "Crotch-Gate" controversy with aerodynamic underwear modifications
๐Ÿ‘ฝHuh

Olympic ski jumpers cause "Crotch-Gate" controversy with aerodynamic underwear modifications

Norwegian ski jumpers sparked "Crotch-Gate" at the 2026 Olympics by adding extra fabric to their uniforms for better aerodynamics. The modification could add up to 3 meters to their jumps, prompting officials to ban the enhancement and furious competitors to call it "doping with a different needle."

Esquireยท
๐ŸŒ€
8