Gymnast Giorgia Villa scored a silver medal with her team in Tuesday’s all-around final at the 2024 Paris Olympics, but the Italian athlete is still going home with a gold…wheel of cheese.
Villa has won the hearts of fans thanks to her partnership with Parmigiano-Reggiano—and the steady stream of cheese-related photos that have come along with it.
“This may be the most relatable athlete lol,” one user wrote online.
“This is now the only thing I care about in life. I don’t even watch the Olympics,” another added.
“Giorgia Villa being sponsored by parmesan cheese might be the biggest flex in history,” a third person chimed in.
Reddit had jokes too. “BRB gonna train to become an Olympian in the hopes of a huge feta sponsorship,” one person wrote on the platform. “It’s also possibly the most convincing endorsement I’ve ever seen! I have no trouble believing she both likes and eats Parmesan,” another added.
The 21-year-old gymnast, who is competing at the Paris Olympics for her home country of Italy, signed up for the on-brand partnership with Parmigiano-Reggiano back in April 2021. She shared the news on Instagram alongside a photo of her posed with, what else, a giant cheese wheel.
“I am very happy to be part of the great @parmigianoreggiano family,” she wrote in a translated caption. “Since I was a child I’ve always loved this amazing product, a symbol of excellence and Italian culture, and since today being able to collaborate with them makes me extremely proud and excited to face future challenges!”
She has continued to post with the cheese. There was Villa eating parm on the beam:
Villa eating parm outside:
Villa texting and eating:
Villa eating parm and reading:
And Villa while it rains parm:
Unable to compete in the individual all-around final due to a recurring back injury, it looks as if Villa is ready to pack up her silver medal, parmesan cheese wheels (which I’m sure she packed and brought to the olympic village), and head back to Italy.
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