The Swedish women’s handball team competing in the 2024 Paris Olympics reportedly bought new mattresses because they found the ones in the Olympic Village too hard.
According to French media outlets like Le Figaro, the Swedish handball team decided to replace the mattresses after spending one night on the cardboard beds in the Olympic Village.
The decision was reportedly led by the older players, including Jamina Roberts, who said she can’t stand not getting a good night’s sleep.
In a local media interview, Roberts mentioned that the problem wasn’t the cardboard bed frame, which perfectly suited her. She added that the issue was the hard mattress. She explained that the mattresses were new, so they took time to soften up, but they couldn’t wait because they wanted to get a good night’s sleep right away.
Ultimately, some athletes, including Roberts, purchased new mattresses from an IKEA store in Paris.
The Paris Olympic Committee provided the athletes with cardboard beds, first introduced at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics as part of an eco-friendly initiative. The beds were reinforced from the ones used in the Tokyo Olympics to withstand up to 250 kg (about 551 lbs).
