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The cardboard beds made waves across social media during the 2020 Tokyo Games
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The cardboard beds from the 2020 Tokyo Games are making their return to the Olympic Village ahead of the 2024 Paris Games.
A TikTok posted by the official Olympics account on July 8 explained that the beds are “sustainable” and the materials are “100% made in France.”
The beds themselves “consist of three modules” that allow athletes to choose the mattress’s firmness and the frames can extend based on a person’s size. The beds will then be “fully recycled after the Games.”
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The beds first went viral back in 2021 when American track and field runner Paul Chelimo first posted about them on X (formerly known as Twitter). He wrote that the beds were “aimed at avoiding intimacy among athletes.”
“Beds will be able to withstand the weight of a single person to avoid situations beyond sports,” Chelimo wrote at the time. “At this point I will have to start practicing how to sleep on the floor; cause If my bed collapses and I have no training on sleeping on the floor I’m done😂.”
Olympic officials quickly jumped in to debunk the rumors about the beds on X after Irish gymnast Rhys McClenaghan posted a video of him jumping on the bed and testing its sturdiness.
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“You heard it first from @TeamIreland gymnast @McClenaghanRhys – the sustainable cardboard beds are sturdy,” officials posted.
As Olympic athletes arrive in Paris ahead of the Games – which are set to kick off July 26 – they are also getting the opportunity to test out the beds for themselves once again.
McClenaghan, 25, posted an updated video on Instagram July 20, where he tested out and “debunked” the “anti-sex” bed. McClenaghan said that the beds “withstood his test” last time and he proceeded to do somersaults and a handstand on the bed to show they are sturdy.
British springboard diver Tom Daley also showed off the bed and tested it out in another Instagram video July 22 and displayed the “Paris Olympic” duvet athletes receive on each bed.
American canoe slalom athlete Evy Leibfarth also posted a video on TikTok July 22 to and confirmed athletes were “sleeping on a mattress.” The 20-year-old also confirmed that the organizers made the “frames like this to minimize environmental impact” from the Games.
The plans to use cardboard beds for the Olympic athletes were introduced back in January 2020, before the Tokyo Games were delayed due to the pandemic. Japanese company Airweave explained at the time that the beds would be made of recyclable material for a more sustainable setup and make it easier for the host city to accommodate the athletes.
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