Skateboarder Nyjah Huston is giving Us a compelling reason to keep Olympic medals in storage boxes.
“These Olympic medals look great when they’re brand-new, but after letting it sit on my skin with some sweat for a little bit and then letting my friends wear it over the weekend, they’re apparently not as high quality as you would think,” Huston, 29, said in a Thursday, August 8, Instagram Story video. “Look at that thing: It’s looking rough.”
According to Huston, the front of the medal — which reads “Paris 2024” with an image of the Olympic rings — is “starting to chip off a little.”
He joked, “Olympic medals, maybe gotta step up the quality a little.”
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Huston earned the bronze during the men’s street competition, his first medal at the Games. (Huston made his Olympic debut at the 2020 Games in Tokyo.)
In a follow-up post on his Instagram Stories, Huston remarked that the medal looked “like it went to war and back.” It’s not known what happened to Huston’s trophy, but he did learn an important lesson about how to keep it looking pristine.
“I guess the medals are meant to be in cases,” he quipped via social media. “Not meant for the send.”
Huston placed third in the skateboarding competition behind Japan’s Yuto Horigome and Team USA’s Jagger Eaton.
“What a feeling being out there representing the country!!! The energy was real. I appreciate everyone for the good vibes and support,” Huston wrote via Instagram late last month of the Olympic medal ceremony. “We left it all out there and I’m proud to say I put on a solid show for the USA! Hyped to be standing on the podium with these two who absolutely destroyed. But most of all, just hyped and thankful for this life of skateboarding. Til we can’t no more.”
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Huston has since left Paris, ahead of the closing ceremonies, and is now getting back to normal life in California.
“Damn the past couple days have been tough. Since I got home it’s taking everything in me to get out of bed and start living again. I didn’t go into Paris with expectations,” he wrote in a lengthy August 2 post on Instagram. “Just wanted to go out there, land some tricks and enjoy the moment. But after being in a position with a good shot at the win and not pulling thru, f—k it hurts. In that moment I wanted to bring home that gold for us so bad. More then anything I’ve ever wanted in my life.”
He concluded, “It felt like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and I think that’s the part that really makes it hard to let go of. At times when I feel down and depressed over something like this, I feel that it’s wrong because I know I have so much in life to be happy and thankful for. I’m in good health. I have amazing family and friends who are always there for me and I get to make a living off of doing what I love most which is such a huge blessing.”
