This New Olympic Star Calls Himself the 'Muffin Man'

Among the breakout stars of these Olympics is a Norwegian who hasn't medaled but has swept the Internet with his passion—for chocolate muffins. Swimmer Henrik Christiansen, 27, has posted 11 TikTok videos in the last five days extolling the "choccy muffins" served in the Olympic Village cafeteria. It started out very generally, with a video that rated various meals he had consumed. He awarded the "insane" muffin, which People reports has a "gooey melted chocolate center and a sprinkling of chocolate chips," an 11 out of 10. Next came a video that zoomed in on the muffin and proclaimed it "the single greatest thing about the Olympic Village so far."

Christiansen has since declared himself "the Olympic muffin man," made a light-hearted video about his "problem," and created several videos that involve dark chocolate smeared on his face. Many of his muffin-related videos have millions of views, with NBC News reporting that some are getting tens of thousands of views within minutes of posting. It flags one common sentiment posted on TikTok: that this is "the only Olympic village love story that matters." As for the athletic end of things, Christiansen ranked 25th in Monday's 800-meter freestyle heats. He's set to swim the 10-kilometer marathon swimming event on Aug. 9 and the men's 1,500-meter freestyle, which begins with heats on Saturday. (More 2024 Paris Olympics stories.)