The Olympic village is putting the tenacity of its world-class athletes to the test. Housing the Games’ 14,250 participating athletes, it offers camaraderie and convenience through centralized coffee shops, virtual reality studios, bike rentals, beauty salons and even dental clinics. But while staying in the village fully immerses the athletes in the Olympic experience, Paris 2024’s focus on sustainability has left many Olympians unimpressed–driving some to leave the premises for other accommodations to avoid impeding their athletic performances.
Italian gold medal-winning swimmer Thomas Ceccon sleeping next to park bench. He complained about the lack of A/C and noise inside the athletes village. pic.twitter.com/xQADZ37T4h
— SAINT (@saint) August 4, 2024
Europe’s heat wave and no AC
We knew the athlete’s village would not be air conditioned (the village uses a water-cooling system to reduce the Games’ carbon footprint), and athletes were right to be concerned. Temperatures in the past week have reached 35 C, considerably hotter than Paris’s average August temperature of 26 C. Paris has been put on yellow alert for these extreme temperatures, indicating severe weather that could soon begin to disrupt day-to-day activities.
Athletes have also complained about the “suffocating” buses transporting athletes to and from competition venues, which have sealed windows and no air conditioning.
Cardboard beds
Numerous athletes have posted videos jumping and flipping on their sustainable cardboard beds to debunk the anti-sex rumour that has been circling since the beds first appeared at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. Athletes have also debunked claims that the mattresses, which are woven from recycled fishing lines and customizable for the athlete’s desired firmness level, are at all comfortable.
“My back is about to fall off,” one athlete said in a TikTok video. “It’s actually rock solid, but that was the soft side.” She debated taking the floor over the uncomfortable bed to avoid to waking up every couple of hours, finally resorting to purchasing a mattress topper to improve the situation.
@tillykearns Replying to @UnLikeOtherSouls ♬ Chopin Nocturne No. 2 Piano Mono – moshimo sound design
Other athletes have had mattresses or entire beds flown from their home countries, or have taken it upon themselves to order something more comfortable directly into the village. Team USA’s tennis star, U.S. Open champion and flag bearer Coco Gauff, also says 10 women are sharing two bathrooms in her dorm; most world-class athletes would rather avoid competing for a toilet right before competing on the Olympic stage.
@cocogauff #olympics #olympicvillage ♬ female rage – bel6va
Food shortages
Being tasked with preparing more than 13 million meals is tough enough on its own–now, Olympic village chefs have been scrambling to provide athletes with meals amid a food shortage that started the first day of competition. It’s rumoured that even now, a week into the Games and two weeks into the athletes’ Village stay, eggs and grilled meats have continued to be in short supply.
@dasha_tofu #olympicvillage #paris2024 #muffin ♬ original sound – Dasha & Tofu
The village sourced food locally and seasonally, and has upped the available plant-based protein sources, which some athletes have complained don’t line up with what they need to fuel performance. There have been mixed reviews about the quality of the food in the Village; some say the food is unseasoned and undercooked and that the portions are too small, while others seem satisfied.
“It’s definitely not made for high performance”
Australian swimmer Ariarne Titmus, who took gold and the Olympic record in the women’s 400m freestyle earlier this week, is not a fan of the Village; she claims the conditions caused her to fall short of taking down the world record. “It probably wasn’t the time I thought I was capable of, but living in the Olympic Village makes it hard to perform,” Titmus told the media. “It’s definitely not made for high performance, so it’s about who can really keep it together in the mind.”
Paris Olympics: Ariarne Titmus slams conditions in the Paris Olympic village – forcing Australia’s head swimming coach to hit back https://t.co/yGhIiCXNrv pic.twitter.com/dPV7FkU72f
— Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) July 29, 2024
Team Australia’s head swim coach, Rohan Taylor, disagrees, telling media that the environment is what the Olympics is all about. “Every Olympics I’ve been a part of, every Olympic Games that you see, is a test of athletes’ ability to come here, compete and perform when it matters,” he says.
All athletes deal with it–other than the ones who have already checked themselves into a hotel, that is. Staying in the Olympic village is not mandatory for Olympians competing in the Games. The U.S. men’s basketball team has been staying in hotels since 1992, and this year, the U.S. women’s tennis team (except Gauff) followed suit. The rates for Parisian hotel rooms are much higher than in previous summers–but if there’s anytime to splurge for these athletes, it’s at the Olympics.
