When the champions get off the slopes or the ice at the Beijing Olympics, they are handed Bing Dwen Dwen, the chubby panda mascot of the Games.
Where are the medals? They come later at a special ceremony where the day's winners gather.
But immediately after competition, the winning athletes receive a plush toy panda, stuffed inside a plastic shell that is meant to represent ice. Bing, in fact, means ice in Chinese. The toy is also adorned with a golden wreath.
U.S. athletes, members of the silver medalists team, hold up the mascot during a victory ceremony after the team event in the figure skating competition at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Monday, Feb. 7, 2022, in Beijing. (AP PhotoNatacha Pisarenko)
A similar ritual unfolded at the Pyeongchang Games four years ago. There, immediately after winning gold, silver or bronze, medalists got Soohorang, a striped white tiger that served as the mascot of those Games.
Mascots that were presented to the medalists are displayed before the award ceremony for the men's moguls at Genting Snow Park at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Saturday, Feb. 5, 2022, in Zhangjiakou, China. (AP PhotoGregory Bull)
A mascot that is presented to the medal winners is seen during the award ceremony for the women's moguls at Genting Snow Park at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Sunday, Feb. 6, 2022, in Zhangjiakou, China. (AP PhotoFrancisco Seco)
Mascots that were presented to the medalists are displayed before the award ceremony for the men's moguls at Genting Snow Park at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Saturday, Feb. 5, 2022, in Zhangjiakou, China. (AP PhotoGregory Bull)