26 Times Olympians Forgot That Their Medals Were Not Edible

For these elite athletes, victory was so close they could taste it — literally 

Simone Biles

Simon Biles. Alex Livesey/Getty

got her first taste of gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics, and it must've been sweet — she ended up taking home four gold medals, setting an American record for most gold medals in women's gymnastics at a single Olympic Games.

Usain Bolt

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is an eight-time gold medalist, so you could say that medals are his favorite snack.

Kevin Durant

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didn't look too sure watching his teammate LeBron James taking a bite out of his medal in 2012.

Kevin Durant

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But by the 2020 Games in Tokyo, Durant snacked on his gold medal like a old pro.

Jeff Henderson

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must have thought that when they said his medal was "24-carat gold," they meant "carrot."

The Fierce Five

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decided to nibble on their gold medals at the 2012 Olympics — though teammate Kyla Ross (left) looks a little unsure of their choice of snack.

Diana Taurasi & Sue Bird

each took a bite after winning gold at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Xander Schauffele

Xander Schauffele. Zheng Huansong/Xinhua via Getty

experienced sweet, sweet victory when he won gold in the the men's individual stroke play competition at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Shaunae Miller-Uibo

INA FASSBENDER/AFP/Getty

needed a little snack after winning gold in the women's 400m event in 2020.

Aksel Lund Svindal

DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP/Getty

of Norway must have been so excited to win gold for alpine skiing that he forgot his medal wasn't a convenient, protein-filled snack.

Danny aus den Birken

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of Germany took a bite of his silver medal at the 2018 Winter Games while his teammate looked on with a level of concern that we all share.

Han Xiaopeng

JEAN-PIERRE CLATOT/AFP/Getty

of Team China really savored his victory at the 2006 Games.

Gianni Romme, Rintje Ritsma & Bart Veldkamp

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all tasted their medals while accepting the top prizes for men's 5,000m speedskating in 2006.

Serena Williams

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clearly likes the taste of gold — she has four Olympic gold medals to her name.

Shani Davis

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munched on his gold medal with a big smile on his face at the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver.

Naoko Takahashi

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of Team Japan took a particularly dainty bite of her gold medal after winning the women's marathon in 2000.

Kobe Bryant & Dwyane Wade

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took different approaches to chomping on their medals at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

Rafael Nadal

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celebrated his win at the 2008 Olympics by sinking his teeth into his medal like it was a Double Stuf Oreo.

Elizabeth Manley

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looked determined to make a dent in her silver medal, which she earned at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary.

James Cracknell

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let his son, Croyde, take a taste of one of his two gold medals — looks like he's ready for solid (like, rock solid) foods!

Tom Daley

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won his first gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and swiftly made sure that it tasted the way he dreamed it would.

Kelsey Plum, Allisha Gray, Jacquelyn Young & Stefanie Dolson

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shared a snack as well as a victory at the 2020 Tokyo Games.

A'ja Wilson

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celebrated her team's gold medal win in women's basketball with a quick chomp of her trophy.

Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir

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took different approaches to showing off their gold medals for figuring skating ice dance, which they won for Team Canada in 2018.

Shaun White

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already knows the drill when it comes to everyone's favorite shiny, post-competition snack: he has three golds.

Olga Nikitina & Sofya Pozdnyakova

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of the ROC know that sharing is caring!