Chinese trampolinist's Games gold medal loses its shine
Surface marks appear on the gold medal won by Chinese trampolinist Zue Xueying
The organizer of the Tokyo Olympic Games said the surface that has been rubbed off winners' gold medals is a layer of coating and its removal doesn't affect their quality, Global Times reported today.
Concerns about the quality of the medals were raised after Zhu Xueying, China's women's trampoline gold medalist, posted images and a video on Weibo on August 23 in which she slightly rubbed the gold medal with her finger and the surface wore away.
Zhu rubs the surface of her gold medal.
Zhu said she thought there was a stain on the gold medal so she wanted to wipe it clean. Not until the "stain" grew even larger did she realize the surface of the metal was being rubbed off.
Global Times contacted Japan Mint, producer of all medals for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, who said they were unaware of the matter.
When asked if athletes could get a replacement, the Mint advised the newspaper to propose the question to the Tokyo Olympic Games Organizing Committee.
The organizer said that what had been rubbed off was not gold but a layer of coating. Even if the entire layer was peeled off, the quality of the gold medal wouldn't be affected.
The organizer said earlier that all Games medals were made from recycled metals extracted from used electronics such as mobile phones.
Zhu Xueying with her gold medal at the women's trampoline event award ceremony at Tokyo Olympic Games.
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