Organizers Winter Olympic Games 2026 say they are investigating why medals are falling – not even a week after the Games – after some athletes reported problems.

USA Alpine Ski Team gold medalist Breezy Johnson it was revealed during a press conference that the ribbon of her sports equipment had torn away from the metal shortly after she was presented with the award.

“So there’s the medal. And there’s the ribbon,” she said, showing a lone blue belt to a roomful of reporters. “And here’s a little piece that’s supposed to go in the ribbon to hold the medal, and yes, it’s broken.”

“I was jumping up and down with excitement and then it just fell,” she continued before holding up a separate gold pendant.

“I’m sure someone will fix it… It’s not like it’s crazy broken, but it’s a little broken,” she added, before warning a fellow athlete not to jump while wearing a medal.

Similarly, Team USA figure skating gold medalist Alysa Liu found her medal disintegrating shortly after winning it.

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“My medal doesn’t need a ribbon,” she wrote in an Instagram video showing the separate elements.

Fellow team gold medalist Ellie Kam said Liu, her roommate, was jumping for joy when the medal fell and picked up “a few dents”.

“She was so excited she was jumping up and down, and the medal is a little too heavy for the ribbon, I think, so it just popped out,” Kam told Reuters on Monday.

Liu later had the medal replaced, Kam said.

“There was a lot more drama than I thought there would be when I got back to my room,” she added. “But that’s all well and good.”

German athlete Justus Strelow’s medal also disintegrated during the celebrations.

A video of him and his biathlon team enjoying third place showed the medal detaching from the ribbon and falling to the ground as he jumped up and down.

“Hey Olympics, what about those medals?” the inscription reads. “Aren’t they meant to be celebrated?”

Meanwhile, Swedish cross-country skier Ebba Andersson said her silver medal “fell in the snow and broke in two” during the victory lap.

“Now I hope the organizers have a plan B for broken medals,” she said.

Chief Operating Officer of the Milano-Cortina 2026 Games Andrea Francisi he told the BBC that the organizers of the event were aware of the problem and that they were investigating it.

“We are fully aware of the situation,” he said. “We are looking for exactly what the problem is.

“We will pay maximum attention to the medals and obviously that is something we want to be perfect when the medal is presented because this is one of the most important moments for the athletes.”

A source close to the situation told Reuters the problem could stem from the medal’s cord, which is equipped with a separation mechanism required by law.

The system is designed to automatically release if pulled too hard, preventing the user from choking.

— With files from Reuters

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