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Free condoms provided for athletes at the Winter Olympics ran out in just three days, according to Italian newspaper La Stampa.
An anonymous athlete told the newspaper, “The supplies ran out in just three days. They promised us more will arrive, but who knows when.”
The report said Olympic organisers had not been “particularly generous with the numbers.”
It noted that fewer than 10,000 condoms were made available, compared with 300,000 distributed at the Paris Summer Olympics in 2024, where athletes received about two per day each.
“In Paris the athletes received 300,000 condoms – two per day each – but the numbers for these Winter Games were significantly lower: not even 10,000,” La Stampa’s report states.
Just under 3,000 athletes are competing at the Winter Olympics, compared to around 10,500 in Paris two years ago.
Last week, Lombardy governor Attilio Fontana said the provision of condoms should not be a source of embarrassment. “Yes, we provide free condoms to athletes in the Olympic village,” he wrote on social media.
“If this seems strange to some, they’re unaware of the established Olympic practice. It began in Seoul 1988 to raise awareness among athletes and young people about sexually transmitted disease prevention— a topic that shouldn’t cause embarrassment.”
Fontana shared an Instagram post by Spanish figure skater Olivia Smart, who showed condoms stamped with the yellow Lombardy Region logo.
“I found them,” she said. “They have everything you need.”
Athletes have access to other facilities in the Olympic village, including a large gym, table football and air hockey games, a piano, and free drink machines stocked with Coca-Cola and Innocent smoothies.
