パリ五輪・パラの「欠陥」メダル、交換要請は２００個以上

【パリＡＦＰ＝時事】フランスのパリ造幣局は２月２８日、同局が製造を担ったパリ五輪・パラリンピックのメダルに関し、これまでに２２０個の交換要請を受けたことをＡＦＰの取材で明らかにした。（写真は２０２４年パリ五輪のメダル）
　昨年開催されたパリ五輪のメダルをめぐっては、大会が終了してからわずか数週間のうちに、一部の選手からメダルが変色したり欠けたりしているとの苦情が出ていた。
　これを受けてパリ造幣局は、交換するメダルにはオリジナルと同じ刻印が施される一方で、耐久性を高めるために保護用のニスが追加されるとの声明を出した。
　また、「すでに一部のメダルが交換され、アスリートの要請に応じて交換作業を続けている」とし、「２０２４年８月から、該当するメダルの交換を確実にするためにあらゆる手段を講じた」とも述べていた。
　今年１月には、国際オリンピック委員会（ＩＯＣ）が「欠陥のある」メダルを組織的に交換していくと発表。この「欠陥」という表現に対し、造幣局側は「損傷」と言い直している。
　交換される２２０個のメダルは、パリ五輪・パラリンピックで授与された５０８４個のうち４％に相当する。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2025/03/03-17:03）

The mint in France responsible for producing medals for the Paris Olympics and Paralympics has received 220 requests to replace ones won at the Games, it told AFP on Friday.
Some athletes have complained their medals have been discoloured or chipped, sometimes within weeks of the Games ending last year.
The mint, the Monnaie de Paris, said the replacement medals would be identical to the originals but a protective varnish would be added to increase their durability.
The Monnaie de Paris has replaced some of them and is continuing its replacement operation at the request of the athletes, it said in a statement.
It said it had done everything possible, from August 2024, to ensure the replacement of the medals concerned.
The International Olympic Committee said in January it would systematically replace defective medals.
The French mint prefers to call them damaged.
Some Olympians from the Paris Games have taken to social media to share photos of the state of their medals.
One of the first was American skateboarder Nyjah Huston, who won bronze in the street skateboarding competition on July 29.
Ten days later he posted a picture of his medal, complaining about its quality.
These Olympic medals look great when they're brand new, but after letting it sit on my skin with some sweat for a little bit and then letting my friends wear it over the weekend, they're apparently not as high quality as you would think, he said.
It's looking rough. Even the front. It's starting to chip off a little.
French swimmer Yohann Ndoye Brouard published a photo on social media to show how his bronze medal from the Olympic 4x100m medley relay had badly discoloured on both sides.
The 220 medals to be replaced represent four percent of the 5,084 awarded at the Paris Olympics and Paralympics.
The medals were designed by the French luxury jewellery and watch brand Chaumet, and created by the French mint.
They include preserved pieces of iron from the original Eiffel Tower, which were put into storage after renovation work in the 20th century.
The issues with the medal were first revealed by French online media outlet La Lettre.
It reported the production process had to be changed at short notice after new regulations banned a component of the varnish initially intended to be used and it had to be replaced at short notice.