If your OLYMPIC MEDAL deteriorated, what would you do?

[AviatorTom]

Medals from the 2024 Paris Olympics are already starting to deteriorate. Two examples are shown in the picture.

The medals for were designed by French luxury jeweler Chaumet and were set with a piece of iron taken from the Eiffel Tower during renovation in the 20th century.

Gold medals are usually made of silver with a gold coating, with bronze ordinarily a mix of copper, zinc and tin.

If you had trained hard and won an Olympic medal, how would you feel if that medal started to deteriorate, starting to look like a piece of junk? Especially considering that many countries required the athletes to pay an import duty when bringing the medals into their home country, a value based on the medal's original condition and scarceness.

[RichA322]

It's definitely annoying. But since they only represent what you achieved it doesn't really matter. Everyone will still know what you achieved as an athlete. The medals just deteriorate because the metal mix is starting a chemical reaction due to the wrong combination of metals. Same way certain metals are not allowed to be used together because they will cause corrosion to one another.

Annoying as hell, but that doesn't lower the athletes success.

[robocop666]

I would feel insulted. I hear they are made of crap as Cassius Clay said so too.

[sage2021]

WOW! That's really insulting!! They know that the people who won those metals worked very, very hard to win them.
And of course they would want to always keep them.
Looks like they bought them off the back of a flat bed truck and had them "cheap" and put in boxes.

Shame on the procurement employees for getting such cheap metals.

[sage2021]

Thank you for the MHO 🙂🧁🌷

[purplepoppy]

Surely the value lies in what they represent and the doors to future sponsorship/media deals they open. But the big question is if they're deteriorating is the eiffel tower still safe.

[AI Opinion]

Winning an Olympic medal is an incredible achievement, and seeing it deteriorate would surely be disappointing. However, the true value of the medal lies in the accomplishment and memories associated with it, not just its physical form. I'd focus on preserving those memories and perhaps explore professional restoration options to maintain its appearance. This could also be an opportunity to advocate for better-quality medals in future games! 🏅

[exitseven]

I would take it back and get a refund.

[Anonymous]

I would be quite disappointed.