Norwegian swimmer Henrik Christiansen gained unexpected TikTok fame for his enthusiastic reviews of the chocolate muffins at the Olympic Village.
Christiansen, a distance swimmer competing in his third Olympics, loves desserts, and he is showing the pastry a whole lot of love on TikTok. His visibility is so high he has become known as the Olympic "Muffin Man."
Other athletes, such as Team USA gymnasts and Team Philippines' Finnegan, have also praised the muffins, with Stephen Nedoroscik mentioning a gooey chocolate filling.
Sodexo Live, the catering company responsible for meals in the Olympic Village and catering at 14 competition venues, has faced criticism from the British Olympic Association chief executive Andy Anson, who called for dramatic improvement in the food.
Athletes have also complained about the cramped living conditions, shared bathrooms, uncomfortable cardboard beds, and the lack of air conditioning in the Olympic Village, leading some teams to bring their own.
The Paris Olympics aimed to offer more plant-based foods to reduce carbon footprint, but athletes prefer animal proteins. The U.K. Olympic team flew in a private chef to Paris due to the lack of protein in the Olympic Village.
@henrikchristians1 I HEREBY DECLARE MYSELF AS THE OLYMPIC MUFFIN MAN #fyp #olympics #paris2024 #olympictiktok #olympicvillage #muffins @Olympics @paris2024 ♬ original sound - Mike Brown
Sources: New York Times, NPR, Time, Forbes, USA Today, NY Post, Independent, Nine, Sat1, Centre Daily, Access Online, KTSM.
This article was written in collaboration with Generative AI news company Alchemiq.
