This story originally appeared in WIRED Italia<\/a>. It has been translated from Italian.<\/em><\/p>\n Yes, the athletes’ beds at the Paris 2024 Olympics are indeed made of cardboard. The paper-based berth news, which has aroused curiosity and some skepticism after some videos of athletes<\/a> circulated online, was confirmed by the organizers of the French Olympic Games<\/a>, who let it be known that Airweave, the Japanese company that had managed the athletes’ rest in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, has been dubbed the “official bedding supporter<\/a> of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.”<\/p>\n These cardboard beds can be transported unassembled in relatively small containers, and then, once their function, is over they can be recycled. Yet despite the paper construction, the beds themselves, once put together properly, have been designed to be surprisingly sturdy\u2014and for good reason.<\/p>\n “We designed these cardboard beds so that they can support up to three or four people jumping, because after winning a medal, people are very happy,” Motokuni Takaoka, founder and president of Airweave, said.<\/p>\n This content can also be viewed on the site it originates<\/a> from.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The introduction of cardboard beds had reignited a controversy that arose during the Tokyo Olympics. In 2020, American cross-country skier Paul Chelimo expressed his concern by posting a video of the beds<\/a> and speculating that their apparent fragility could be a way to limit intimacy among athletes. The no-sex bed theory, however, was later debunked, with the distancing measures implemented by the Olympic committee aimed at reducing the risk of Covid infection.<\/p>\n However, the ban on intimacy between athletes, which had fueled these concerns at the time, was lifted by the Olympic committee last March. Director of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic villages Laurent Michaud told Sky News at the time that the committee would be giving out 300,000 condoms<\/strong><\/a> to ensure “everybody will have what they are expecting and what they need”.<\/p>\n As to withstanding the rigors of jumping, celebratory or any other kind, as the athletes’ videos show, the beds are designed to withstand the stress of up to 250 kg in weight, as well as have a customizable modular mattress<\/a> system with three blocks in different firmness levels that can be adapted to different athletes’ physiques and needs.<\/p>\nTikTok content<\/h4>\n
No-Sex Beds?<\/h2>\n