Do Swimmers Pee in the Pool? How Do Gymnasts Avoid Wedgies? All Your Olympics Questions Answered

The 2024 Olympics are in full swing and, happily, the Games in Paris have been everything we could've hoped for, full of sporting triumphs, new heroes, families flipping out, Snoop Dogg living his best life and the usual smattering of controversy.

Because, sports. There has to be drama, or else it's just thousands of people on a trip to France.

But as we've watched the gymnastics, swimming, diving, tennis, soccer, rugby and more unfold, we've also been wondering about... a lot.

Are there official rules surrounding the way athletes are allowed to accessorize their sportswear? How long is too long when it comes to a competitor's nails? How do synchronized swimmers stay perfectly made up when their heads are underwater most of the time? Who was the Speedo-wearing hero who retrieved Emma Weber's swim cap from the bottom of the pool? 

Not to mention, is any fire actually involved in the lighting of the Olympic flame? And what, pray tell, is that creature serving as the official mascot for the Paris Games? (And is one of the requirements that, whatever the mascot is, it's easily replicable in plushie form?)

Moreover, where are the surfers staying in Tahiti, which is almost 10,000 miles away from Paris and the Olympic Village? And wherever they're stashing their wetsuits, are the beds made of cardboard?

And, since day one, what's in that box the medalists are being presented with on the podium?!

"One of the questions I've been asked more than anything else is what's inside," Great Britain's Yasmin Harper, who earned bronze with partner Scarlett Mew Jensen in the women's synchronized 3-meter springboard, told The Athletic. "I haven't opened it yet, but I've been told it's a poster, or a scroll, with some bronze on it."

We figured that if we had questions, then you had some, too—and we've decided to save you the trouble and answer them for you right here. (Except if your question is how gymnastics scoring really works, because nobody knows the answer to that.)

First the Olympic torch gets toted around the world and, at the Opening Ceremony, a designated VIP lights the Olympic flame, to burn through the duration of the Games.

But in Paris, there's no fire burning in the Mathieu Lehanneur-designed cauldron set up in the Jardin des Tuileries. Rather, it's an eco-friendly illusion, courtesy of 40 LED spotlights and 200 misting nozzles. 

And every night, a hot air balloon-type contraption raises the cauldron 200 feet into the air.

"Thanks to this system," Lehanneur explained to NPR, "it helps us and basically it creates an amazing effect by creating this strong light and foggy and moist effect around the flame."

There was fire, however, at the end of the torch (also designed by Lehanneur), and there's a teeny-tiny real flame on display in the Tuileries Gardens, as well.

"For the Olympic movement, only the symbol of a flame that does not go out before the end of the Games matters," a spokesperson for the Paris Games told the New York Times. "Given the specificity of our cauldron and the technologies involved, we will still keep a lit lantern in the immediate vicinity of the cauldron for the public to admire."

That triangular red blob with eyes is called the Phryges (pronounced free-jh), and it's actually a hat that comes in pairs representing "two little Phrygian caps that embody the French spirit, French values and are a strong symbol of France," according to the International Olympic Committee.

Moreover, one sports two legs and the other a prosthetic blade.

"Always a double act—as a symbol of togetherness—the Olympic Phryge and the Paralympic Phryge are the leaders of a tribe who always have their trainers on," the IOC explained. "The Paris 2024 mascots aim to lead a revolution through sport. Their mission: to get the world moving in the run up to the Games and beyond."

There's a reason why getting to stay in the Olympic Village is so special: If you're not competing in the Olympics, you don't get to stay there.

Nor do you get to hang out, even if you're related to—or the romantic partner of—an Olympian, let alone just a friend.

However, Olympian moms who are nursing can bring their babies into the Village.

"Our primary goal is to create a healthy and safe environment focused on high performance," Team USA's Olympic Village Director Daniel Smith told People of the strict rules regarding guests. "Our primary function is to make it as distraction-free as possible."

And safe, hence the 600,000 condoms available from the athlete resource center, "a space that does it for athletes only," Smith said. "And obviously, they can take as they need."

The surfing events at the Paris Games are being held at Teahupo’o on the Tahitian coast, almost 10,000 miles away from the City of Light.

But while the 48 surfers in Tahiti had to make their own fun during the Opening Ceremony along the River Seine, their village is a yacht called the Aranui 5, where everyone gets a private room and a view of the ocean.

And, as seen in German surfer Camilla Kemp's TikToks showing off the accommodations, their beds are not made of cardboard. 

Along with their medals, the athletes who make the podium have been presented with a skinny gold box in Paris, begging the question: What's in the box?!

Inside is a copy of the official poster of these Games boasting a colorful custom work by French artist Ugo Gattoni illustrating the spirit of the XXXIII Olympiad.

Yes, but the specifications differ among sports.

For synchronized swimmers, "Theatrical makeup shall not be worn," per the 2024 USA Artistic Swimming Rulebook. "Natural makeup that represents the competitor's unique personality and/or theme of the routine may be used." (Which is kinda funny, since you're supposed to look indistinguishable from those you're synchronizing with.) 

So, no Black Swan-like looks, but, as U.S. artistic swimmer Anita Alvarez told Vogue in 2016, "You're swimming far from the judges and the audience, so you have to put on a lot to help your features show from far away."

In addition to using waterproof mascara, foundation and cream eye shadow, she and partner Mariya Koroleva put Aqua Seal over their eye makeup and combed Knox gelatin mixed with water through their hair before putting it up, to basically glue it in place.

The female gymnasts also wear a full face of makeup—they're basically flying ballerinas—and that's perfectly fine, the only directive being, per the 2024 USA Gymnastics Women's Program Rules, that they look "well-groomed."

Simone Biles' non-shellacked updo during the qualifying round was also a sanctioned look, the only hair requirement being that it's "secured away from the face."

Dazzling manicures aren't required, they're just beloved. But, while a track and field superstar like Sha'Carri Richardson can paint her nails as she pleases (minus anything that could qualify as an advertisement), gymnasts can't have a manicure that judges find distracting.

Volleyball players, meanwhile, are advised to keep their nails short.

You've probably seen a few swimmers, such as Paris' 100-meter butterfly silver medalist Gretchen Walsh, sporting earrings: That's allowed, but studs only.

Same goes for gymnasts, though they must remove all other piercings before competing, and no jewelry other than earrings is allowed.

And per USA Volleyball's 2023-2025 Indoors Rules Book, "Jewelry may be worn provided its nature does not present a concern for safety." Meaning, no long chains and no dangling earrings or big hoops.

Already having to deal with blisters, taped-up limbs and general muscular wear-and-tear, the last thing Olympic gymnasts need to worry about it is a wedgie.

And not least because picking one could result in a point deduction, as could having an exposed bra strap, according to 2008 all-around gold medalist Nastia Liukin.  

While having custom-fit leotards to fit each athlete's shape generally does the trick, "a lot of people use like sticky spray [called TuffSkin] for your butt so your leotard doesn’t move," Liukin told People in 2016.

She personally had never used the stuff on her bottom, she added, but "we use it for our wrists before we put tape on underneath our grips because we’re sweaty and it’s a little extra stick."

It's not a length of time, but a distance, and Great Britain's Luke Greenbank found out the hard way when his first-place finish in his 200-meter backstroke heat was disqualified because he dove in and stayed under for more than 15 meters.

Per regulations, a swimmer's head must emerge from the water within 15 meters from the start of the race and after every turn.

Diving in before the starting signal—a false start—also results in an automatic disqualification.

With all that talk about what's floating in the River Seine, a little chlorine may be going a long way over at La Défense Arena.

Not that she'd done so in that pool, per se, but "I've probably peed in every single pool I've swam in," two-time gold medalist Lilly King, who's competing in her third Olympics, told the Wall Street Journal ahead of the Paris Games. "That's just how it goes."

Added three-time Olympic medalist Katie Hoff, "It sounds so gross to outsiders, but because there is so much chlorine you don't even think about it."

Fun fact: Indoor swimming pools tend to give off a pungent smell we associate with chlorine—but chlorine is odorless. The smell comes from it interacting with, um, organic compounds. (Not just urine, but also skin and hair, etc.) 

Have you ever seen as many hairless arms, legs and torsos?! 

"I just know when I shave I feel higher in the water," U.S. swimmer Ryan Murphy, a four-time gold medalist who took bronze in the 100-meter backstroke in Paris, told the Associated Press in 2023. "I feel fast."

Bob Bowman—who coached Michael Phelps and has helped propel Frenchman Leon Marchand to three gold medals in Paris as of Aug. 1 (including two in one night, a first-time Olympic feat for any swimmer)—said shaving "definitely works."

"You definitely feel different when you do it," Bowman told the AP. "I think that's the key. You take off the top layer of your skin and your body is more sensitive to the feel of the water."

However, that's a pre-competition ritual-only for most swimmers.

"Everyone thinks we're fully shaved all the time," eight-time gold medalist Caeleb Dressel told Sports Illustrated in 2021. "We're actually some of the hairiest people around."

The multicolored-Speedo-wearing gentleman who dove into the pool to retrieve U.S. swimmer Emma Weber's cap wasn't some intrepid random guy, but rather just one of the Olympic lifeguards doing his job.

"This situation is common at swimming competitions," a Games spokesperson told CNN. "As the lifeguards are the only people wearing swimwear, apart from the athletes, a request may be made to fetch an item at the bottom of the pool prior to the next race. In this case, the request was made to the lifeguard closest to the item."

In fact, the dutiful guard—dubbed "Bob the Cap Catcher" by NBC Sports commentators Jason Knapp and Amy Van Dyken—didn't even want his real name reported so as not to distract from the competition.

Watch the 2024 Paris Olympics daily on NBC and Peacock until the summer games end with the Closing Ceremony on Sunday, Aug. 11, at 7 p.m. ET/PT.