Former Team USA swimmer Gary Hall Jr., who finished 10th Olympic medals during his career, will be provided with replicas of those medals after he lost them in the deadly California wildfires, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said on Sunday.
The IOC issued a statement over the weekend in response to the multiple Wildfires are burning in Southern California which has claimed at least 24 lives and destroyed more than 12,000 structures.
A general view of the burned residential areas as wildfires continue to wreak havoc, reaching their fifth day and leaving extensive damage in residential areas in Los Angeles on January 12, 2025. (Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images)
“We are in full solidarity with the citizens of Los Angeles and full of admiration for the tireless work of the firefighters and security forces,” the statement read. “At the moment, the full focus must be on fighting the fires and protecting people and property.”
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IOC also confirmed that Hall, a five-time Olympic gold medalist, would receive replicas of his medals that he lost in the Pacific Palisades Fire.
“We have also learned that a great Olympian, Gary Hall Jr., has lost his medals in the fire. The IOC will provide him with replicas.”
Gary Hall Jr. of the United States listens to the national anthem after receiving the gold medal for the men’s swimming 50 meter freestyle event on August 20, 2004 during the Athens 2004 Summer Olympics in the main pool at the Olympic Sports Complex Aquatic Center in Athens, Greece. (Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
In an interview with Sydney Morning Herald Last week, Hall recalled seeing the fires in his neighborhood for the first time.
US Swimmer GARY HALL JR LOSES OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALS TO CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES: ‘SOMETHING I CAN LIVE WITHOUT’
“I saw the flames erupt and houses started to explode. There were explosions. I didn’t have much time,” he said. “Sunset Boulevard was completely jammed. People were leaving cars and running for their lives. The police told them to do it. My boyfriend was trapped in his car around smoke.”
Hall said he only had enough time to grab the essentials and left his medals behind.
“I was thinking about the medals. I didn’t have time to get them,” he told the magazine. “Everyone wants to know if the medals burned? Yes, everything burned. It’s something I can live without. Everything is just something, I guess. It’s going to take some hard work to start over. What can you do?”
Gary Hall Jr. of the United States displays his gold medal in the men’s swimming 50 meter freestyle event on August 20, 2004 during the Athens 2004 Summer Olympics in the main pool of the Olympic Sports Complex Aquatic Center in Athens, Greece. (Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Hall, 50, won four medals, including two golds, in his first Summer Games at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. Four years later, he brought home four more medals and in his final Games, the 2004 Athens Olympics, two more.
In 2012, Hall was inducted into the US Olympic & Paralympic Hall of Fame.
