A viral video shows Olympic gold medalist Thomas Ceccon, an Italian swimmer, sleeping in a park, according to The New York Post.
The Post reported that the image was posted by Saudi rower Husein Alireza and shows Ceccon sleeping on a towel under a tree inside the Olympic Village.
The Sun reported that Ceccon was dubbed the “world’s sexiest swimmer” by fans. He previously criticized the conditions in the Olympic village, according to The Sun, saying:
There is no air conditioning in the village, it’s hot, the food is bad. Many athletes move for this reason: it’s not an alibi or excuse, it’s the reality of what perhaps not everyone knows. I’m disappointed that I didn’t make the final but I was too tired. It’s hard to sleep both at night and in the afternoon.
He was referring to the 200m backstroke final, according to The Sun.
However, the image no longer appears on Alireza’s Instagram page.
The video was shared on X, where it still appears. “Rest today, conquer tomorrow,” the caption on the video reads.
The Beds at the Olympic Village Are Made Out of Recycled Cardboard
The beds at the Olympics have been controversial.
“For Paris 2024 the choice of these beds for the Olympic and Paralympic Village is primarily linked to a wider ambition to ensure minimal environmental impact and a second life for all equipment,” an Olympic spokesperson told France24. The site added, “The bed bases are made from recycled cardboard.”
The spokesperson told France24, “The quality of the furniture has been rigorously tested to ensure it is robust, comfortable, and appropriate for all the athletes who will use it, and who span a very broad range of body types – from gymnasts to judokas.”
According to USA Today, the conditions inside the Olympic Village, in particular the food, have been a topic of controversy during the Paris games.
Ceccon, who has more than 600,000 followers on Instagram, has posted about his Olympic journey but not the park sleeping incident.
British Olympic Association chief Andy Anson told The Times of London that the food was “not adequate.”
“There are not enough of certain foods: eggs, chicken, certain carbohydrates, and then there is the quality of the food, with raw meat being served to athletes,” Anson said to The Times. “They have got to improve it over the next couple of days dramatically.
Thomas Ceccon, Who Was Described as ‘Eclectic,’ Holds a World Record in Swimming
Ceccon is a 23-year-old Italian swimmer who lives in Verona, Italy, according to his Olympics.com biography.
He holds the world record for the “Men’s 100m Backstroke,” according to the page, which notes that he won the gold medal in that event.
“Thomas Ceccon’s first Olympic experience came at the Youth Olympic Games Buenos Aires 2018, where he won the men’s 50m freestyle title, silver medals in the 50m backstroke and 200m individual medley, and bronze in the 100m backstroke and 4x100m freestyle relay,” Ceccon’s Olympics.com biography says.
“At the Tokyo 2020 Olympics in 2021, he helped Italy claim silver in the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay, and bronze in the men’s 4x100m medley relay, and just missed out on a medal with a fourth-place finish in the 100m backstroke.”
Olympics.com reports that Ceccon “comes from a sporting family. His mother competed in figure skating and his father, as an amateur, was involved in athletics and football.”
“He was playing tennis and swimming as a youngster but had to pick one. He followed his brother into swimming. His father said: ‘Thomas had anthropomorphic characteristics, broad shoulders, narrow waist and low center of gravity, and predisposition to water,'” the site reported, attributing the quote to an Italian site, Larena.it.
Coach Riccardo Wenter said, according to Olympics.com, “I’ve known Thomas since he was nine years old, he’s so eclectic because he gets bored easily and we’ve always challenged him on multiple styles to keep his concentration high.”
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Viral Video Captures ‘World’s Sexiest Swimmer’ Thomas Ceccon Sleeping in a Park