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It takes four years of preparation to climb to the top of the podium at the Olympic Games. It means sleepless nights, early mornings, and enormous physical effort to shave off a few seconds and become the best.
So that all of that effort is not forgotten, during the medal ceremony for the top three finishers in each event, they are awarded a medal that reflects the work invested to achieve that goal.
Once the medal is placed around their neck by officials, it is looked at again and again as a symbol of the joy of seeing the objective fulfilled. However, that feeling can vanish instantly if the metal obtained crumbles like sand in one's hands.
Milan Cortina medals break
Breezy Johnson won gold in the downhill this past Sunday, February 8, 2026, in a tight race against her rivals. After the entire medal ceremony and the celebrations, something was not quite right.
In front of reporters, the athlete said she was happy about the medal, but it was already showing some wear despite being completely new. That immediately caused concern among everyone present.
So there's the medal. And there's the ribbon."..."And here's the little piece that is supposed to go into the ribbon to hold the medal, and yeah, it came apart.
Johnson said while holding her gold medal.
She was not the only one to face this issue. Alysa Liu, who also won the gold medal in the figure skating performance, posted an image showing the ribbon separated from the medal.
My medal don't need the ribbon.
Both athletes were part of the United States delegation; however, a third athlete also experienced the same situation. Members of Germany's bronze-winning biathlon team were unable to celebrate as expected because one of them had his medal come apart.
Milan Cortina organizing committee investigates defective medals
Several factors may be contributing to the problem with the medals. Officials are reviewing whether it is the alloy or another issue that is seriously affecting them.
We are fully aware of the situation."..."We are looking into exactly what the problem is. "We are going to pay particular 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.
Andrea Francis, who serves as the Milan Cortina Games chief operations officer, said.
It is worth remembering that this is not the first time medals have suffered from such problems. It also happened at Paris 2024. Several athletes experienced similar issues, and the number of cases increased rapidly once they returned home.
This time, however, the problem appears easier to resolve so that these unfortunate incidents do not continue to overshadow the athletes and their achievements.