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Recently, Israeli baseball player, Ben Wanger, attempted to test out whether the alleged ‘anti-sex’ beds can only withstand the weight of one person
“Been getting a lot of questions about the beds in the Olympic Village, so today we’re gonna check and see how many Israelis it takes to break one of these cardboard beds,” Wagner says in the viral TikTok video as shared by Kann News.
As the video progresses, Wagner and his fellow Israeli Olympians can be seen jumping on the bed, increasing the number of people each time.
The cardboard bed finally broke when nine of them jumped at the same time.
“נראה כמה ישראלים צריך כדי לשבור את אחת ממיטות הקרטון”: סרטון טיקטוק שהעלה שחקן נבחרת הבייסבול של ישראל לטוקיו 2020, בן ווגנר, מראה את שחקני הנבחרת “בוחנים” את עמידות המיטות בכפר האולימפי, כשהם קופצים על אחת המיטות בחדר עד שהיא נשברת@lianwildau pic.twitter.com/ATfDU70lww
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) July 27, 2021
The ‘anti-sex’ cardboard beds has been a trending topic even before the Tokyo 2020 Olympics begun
According to Malay Mail, the beds went viral after American runner Paul Chelimo tweeted that the beds can only hold the weight of one person to avoid situations beyond sports.
Since then, many athletes took to their social media to “debunk” the rumour of the bed’s fragility by filming themselves trying out the bed.
On Saturday, 24 July, our own diver, Leong Mun Yee shared a TikTok video of the ‘anti-sex’ bed. In the video, it can be seen that although the whole bed is made out of cardboard, the material looks like it is pliable and comfortable for sleeping.
Our bed in the OlympicVillage. #SokongMalaysia
While the cardboard beds have long been established for use as makeshift beds in disaster shelters, the Tokyo 2020 Olympics introduced the beds as an eco-friendly gesture
According to a press release by the organisers per Inside The Games, the beds can actually support weight up to nearly 200kg, and are made from high-resistance cardboard.
The beds, provided by Airweave are made from “high resistance lightweight cardboard”, while the mattresses have been specifically designed to improve sleeping. The mattress can also be customised to suit each athlete’s body shape.
“They (the beds) will be recycled into paper products after the Games, with the mattress components recycled into new plastic products,” the organisers said.
Kyodo News also shared a video of the organisers demonstrating how to use these cardboard beds.
This debunking attempt caused an uproar on social media, especially among Japanese citizens:
This user tweeted that Japanese people paid for the bed and all other services with their tax.
“Not free money! Not toy! I feel so bad. I’d like them to go home soon,” the user said.
Image via @kann_news (Twitter)
“This is not funny at all. How could they treat (the bed) like that? Broke [it] on purpose even if they wanted to verify durability, that is soooooo sad as a Japanese,” another user tweeted.
Image via @kann_news (Twitter)
This Japanese citizen expressed his sadness, ” So sad. We, Japanese, are paying for that (the bed) in tax.”
Image via @kann_news (Twitter)
“The taxes [that] Japanese pay are being used. I am very sad. The people are financially distressed. Please think carefully and act,” this user pleaded.
Image via @kann_news (Twitter)
Another person tweeted, “I understand that wondering how strong a cardboard bed is, but I think if nine men of good physique jump on it, the skeleton will break or bend, even if it’s made of wood or stainless steel. Think again why you guys are there. Great luck to your performance.”
Image via @kann_news (Twitter)