Australian pool queen Ariarne Titmus has hit out at the “ridiculous” conditions at the Olympic Village.
The triple gold medallist is among a host of current and former Australian athletes who have weighed in on the “eco-friendly” accommodation conditions in Paris, which include polythene mattresses and beds made from cardboard.
Others have complained about the food options.
Titmus did not hold back when asked if she was disappointed at not breaking her world record when she won back-to-back gold medals in the 400-meter freestyle on Saturday night, despite breaking the Olympic record.
“It probably wasn’t the moment I thought I was capable of, but living in the Olympic Village makes it difficult to perform,” he admitted in an interview on Sunday.
“It’s definitely not built for high performance, so it’s about who can really hold it together in the mind.”
His comments prompted an angry response from Australian swimming head coach Rohan Taylor.
She has since reminded swimmers not to let anything distract them from their performance, including the conditions at the Olympic Village.
Golden girl Ariarne Titmus (pictured) admitted that conditions in the Olympic Village “make it difficult to compete”
Titmus described the conditions as “not made for high performance.” Pictured: a bed in the Athletes’ Village.
“The Olympics have always been a challenge. Every Olympics I’ve participated in, every Olympics you watch, is a test of the athletes’ ability to come here, compete and perform when it matters,” she said.
“It’s about how you handle yourself and whatever environment you’re in, whatever the beds, whatever the food, everyone deals with it.”
“The Olympic Games have always been like this and this is how they are. And that is their beauty.”
Taylor added that the Australian Olympic Committee has gone the extra mile for the athletes, whether it be arranging private transport, providing a barista to make coffee, arranging extra food and air conditioning.
“It’s been resolved now,” Taylor said.
‘The first few days, transportation is always a challenge. As far as food, there are a lot of options. The AOC has a food pantry, but they have options right there, there are several different places to go to eat.’
“The most important thing for them is to swim, get a massage and something to eat and get back to their beds as quickly as possible.”
The beds in the Olympic Village have been the focus of controversy due to their lack of comfort and their ‘wokeness’.
The single beds, produced by Airwave, feature cardboard frames as part of the organizers’ sustainability efforts.
Australian head swimming coach Rohan Taylor (pictured) has reminded swimmers not to let anything distract them from their performance, including conditions in the water.
Ariarne Titmus will look to defend her 200m freestyle title on Tuesday morning
Titmus, who will defend her 200m freestyle title early Tuesday morning Australian time, is not the only Australian athlete to have spoken out about conditions at the Athletes’ Village.
The “anti-sex” cardboard beds came crashing down like a lead balloon on Australian water polo star Tilly Kearns and her teammate Gabi Palm, who said “my back is about to fall off” after their first night.
Tennis star Daria Saville also revealed the village is nothing like being in a hotel in a social media post on Tuesday.
“Here in the Olympic Village we don’t have a cleaning service like a hotel so you have to get your own toilet paper,” she wrote in a caption alongside a video of herself holding several rolls.
This comes after retired Olympic swimmer James Magnussen criticised the Olympics, claiming that the green stance is ruining athletes’ chances of setting world records.
Magnussen won gold, silver and bronze medals at the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games.
He also won the 100-metre freestyle world championship title in 2011 and 2013. Magnussen retired from competitive swimming in 2019.
He believes that the world’s most important sporting event has an ecological and vegan mentality that harms performance.
“There are many factors that make life in the village far from ideal,” the double Olympian wrote in his News Corp Column.
The Olympic Village’s ‘anti-sex’ beds have been the focus of controversy due to their lack of comfort and ‘conscience’
“It’s the cardboard beds that don’t give you optimal sleep.”
“The lack of air conditioning will be a big factor as the week progresses. It rained yesterday and was 20 degrees. In the next few days it will be 35 degrees.
‘That’s going to be a factor and the Australian team having their own portable air conditioners will be a welcome relief.
Magnussen believes they have overstepped their bounds and that the environment created for the athletes could be the toughest ever created to produce world swimming records.
“The lack of world records is due to this eco-friendly, carbon footprint and vegan-first mentality, rather than high performance,” she said.