NANTERRE, France — Norwegian swimmer Henrik Christiansen is a star, thanks to his gold medal-worthy TikToks about the mouth-watering chocolate muffins in the Olympic Village.
The unofficial Muffin Man of the Paris Olympics, Christiansen’s videos are hilarious and so creative, and they’ve boosted his follower count from about 3,000 before the Paris Games to more than 340,000 and 16.7 million likes as of Saturday afternoon. His sense of humor is too good, and he brilliantly used a sound from an iconic scene in Shrek to really lean into the Muffin Man identity.
Saturday after Christiansen finished 20th in the men’s 1,500-meter freestyle prelims, I caught up with him to talk about all things muffins.
“What’s not to like?” the 27-year-old swimmer said. “They’re liquid in the center. They have chocolate chips. They’re really rich. They’re moist. It’s just − everything is really good.”
@henrikchristians1 I don’t think you guys realize how good this stuff is #fyp #zipline #olympics #paris2024 #olympictiktok #olympicvillage #muffins @Mr.Nicho
He said he’s eaten other things in the Olympic Village, obviously, but he’s really enjoying the chocolate muffins.
You can read the full story over at USA TODAY Sports, but here’s an excerpt from it:
As a professional athlete, he views himself “as being in the entertainment business,” and making TikToks about his experience in Olympic Village is another way to engage and show fans backstage moments at the Olympics.
While the videos have made the Oslo resident a social media star, Christiansen said he’s become a popular figure in the village as well.
“I have taken fan photos in the village as the muffin guy, which, I mean, if you’re taking fan photos in the Olympics, you’re someone,” he said. “All the other athletes that are really top, top — like [Rafael] Nadal or like Simone Biles — they’re taking fan photos. Of course, I wish that it was because of my swimming, but this is also fun.”
Read the full story on the Olympics’ unofficial Muffin Man at USA TODAY Sports.
@henrikchristians1 When bae is looking like a snack #fyp #olympics #paris2024 #olympictiktok #olympicvillage #muffins @Olympics @paris2024
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