A Norwegian swimmer has made a splash on social media with his Paris Olympics content. However, it's not the marathon swimmer's freestyle taking the internet by storm, but rather the food -- a gooey chocolate muffin to be specific -- that's fueled Henrik Christiansen's rise to fame at the 2024 Summer Games.
The self-declared "muffin man" does not live on Drury Lane, but while he's been staying in the Olympic Village, Christiansen has repeatedly posted about his love of the sweet treat, which he rated in one of his videos as and 11 out of 10.
From strolling the village with four muffins in hand ahead of his first 800-meter heat of the Games to enjoying stunning Parisian sunsets with romantic piano music and a muffin by his side, Christiansen has made a dozen original videos dedicated to the pastry.
"I HEREBY DECLARE MYSELF AS THE OLYMPIC MUFFIN MAN," he wrote in the caption of a video of himself lip-syncing the famous "Do you know the muffin man?" dialogue from "Shrek" -- all while holding one of the chocolate muffins with crumbs and melted chocolate all over his mouth, no less.
The three-time Olympian's most successful TikTok mimicked a moment from the hit reality show "Love Island" as he ate the gooey muffin in the dining hall, reaching 13.7 million views and thousands of comments.
As Christiansen continues to fuel up in the Olympic Village, he is slated to compete in the 1500-meter freestyle on Saturday at Paris La Défense Arena.
The Olympic Village's Beloved Pastry
For one Olympian, the only thing more precious than a gold medal is ... a chocolate muffin?
Henrik Christiansen, a Norwegian swimmer who competed in the men’s 800-meter freestyle and will compete in the men’s 1500-meter freestyle on Aug. 3, has fallen head over heels for the Olympic Village’s chocolate muffins — and he’s documenting the entire affair on TikTok.
“Reviewing some of the meals i’ve had in the Olympic Village so far,” Christiansen wrote on his first video that includes the chocolaty treat.
He gives the muffin a “11/10” rating and describes it as “insane.”
Later, Christiansen was still thinking about the first muffin he had because that same day he filmed a follow-up video, using Bobby Caldwell’s 1978 song “What You Won’t Do for Love,” in the style of that wildly viral chocolate-covered strawberry TikTok.
“The single greatest thing about the Olympic Village so far🤤,” Christiansen captioned the video.
Christiansen has been posting about his Olympics experience since June 1, when he announced he was headed to the Paris Games.
Since then, he’s posted steadily about swimming, Olympics outfits, the Eiffel Tower and the thrill of the Opening Ceremony, but it’s his muffin videos that have captured the internet’s heart.
Since he’s been in Paris, the Olympian has posted not one, not two, but 12 videos (so far) about the “choccy muffin,” set to dance tracks, viral memes and more.
His most viral video shows him and teammate Nicholas Lia acting out the famous zipline scene from comedy show “I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson,” where the zipline, in this case, is the muffin.
“I feel like you’re just here for the chocolate muffin,” Lia tells Christiansen as he is face-deep in the treat.
The Muffin Man's Viral Fame
Meanwhile, Simone Biles became the most decorated American gymnast in the history of the Olympic Games, and Stephen Nedoroscik helped break a 16-year medal drought for Team USA’s male gymnasts with his pommel horse performance, but the public couldn’t look away from this man and his muffins.
“I now know more about the chocolate muffin than the actual Olympic Games that are happening,” commented one of his fans.
“the way how his aura lit up after taking a bite of the choccy muffin,” wrote another.
“the only Olympic village love story that matters,” commented someone else.
Christiansen, who got on the phone with TODAY.com from the Olympic Village, where he and his muffins currently reside, says his newfound viral fame “doesn’t feel real.”
He says he’s been stopped multiple times in the Olympic Village by people — including New Zealand swimmer Lewis Clareburt — who wanted a photo with the “muffin man.”
As a distance swimmer, Christiansen typically needs to eat a lot of calories — about 7,000 of them — on heavier training days, he says. But at the Olympics, when he’s competing, “it’s a lot lower,” he says — around 4,000 calories — but he can still have some muffins.
But how many muffins has he consumed, exactly? The Olympian says the number is probably lower than one might expect.
“I haven’t really kept track of all of them,” Christiansen says. “I think I’ve shown off more muffins than I’ve actually eaten.”
The Baker Behind the Hype
If you’re suddenly craving a certain chocolate muffin, you’re far from alone. After days of sweet-toothed sleuths attempting to track down who makes the muffin, French catering company Coup de Pates confirmed via LinkedIn on July 31 that it is, in fact, their creation.
“We knew our Maxi Muffin with Intense Chocolate was something special... but we didn’t expect it to spark such a chocolate storm! Thank you all for the love,” the company wrote.
Coup de Pates tells TODAY.com that its recipe for the muffin is a “secret crafted by our chefs,” but the product is “available in many countries around the world” and is on sale for food service professionals on the company’s e-commerce website.
A Viral Trend Fueled by TikTok
The Olympics have been off to an exciting start. Team USA has been winning medals left and right. But if you’re only watching the summer games on your television, you’re missing out on half the fun.
Popularized during the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, Olympians are taking over TikTok to share their behind the scenes experiences and what it’s really like to be an athlete living in the Olympic Village.
Some of the popular videos so far have been room tours, merchandise hauls and dining hall food reviews, the later of which has inspired a new craze of its own.
Shortly after arriving to the Olympic Village, Henrik Christiansen, an Olympic Swimmer for Norway, shared a video of him reviewing the different foods he had tried so far in the dining hall. One of the items? A chocolate muffin. “Insane. 11/10,” he rated it.
Since that initial video, Christiansen has posted 9 TikToks just about the chocolate muffins, which is over half of the 16 videos he’s uploaded since arriving in Paris.
From what Christiansen has shared, these aren’t your ordinary chocolate muffins. In addition to being a chocolate batter with chocolate chunks on top, the inside appears to have melted chocolate, similar to a molten lava cake.
Christiansen’s videos are inspiring fellow Olympic athletes to try the dessert themselves and share their own reviews.
Olympic Swimmer Lewis Clareburt from New Zealand shared a video of him and Christiansen with a chocolate muffin in hand.
American rock climber Colin Duffy also shared a photo post of the treat with the caption reading “You do not understand how good these muffins are.”
U.S. track and field star Gabby Thomas shared it was the best muffin she ever had, giving it a 9.8/10 rating, clarifying in her caption that she would’ve rated them higher but they had run out of them when she tried to get them earlier so she deducted points for that.
As for viewers at home who aren’t able to visit the Olympic Village dining hall, some have taken it upon themselves to find out where they can get the chocolate muffins. Others are sharing recipes that fans can make at home to soothe the craving.
A Chocolate Storm for the Ages
Prior to Coup de pates releasing an official statement, some eagle eye fans pieced together that the bakeries “Maxi Muffin Chocolat Intense” looked strikingly similar to the viral chocolate muffins.
UPDATE: French bakery Coup de pates confirmed in a LinkedIn post that they are the one’s providing the viral chocolate muffins to the Olympic Village. “We knew our Maxi Muffin with Intense Chocolate was something special… but we didn’t expect it to spark such a chocolate storm! Thank you all for the love!” While it doesn’t appear that there is a way for every day fans to purchase the muffins online, they did share that food service professionals can purchase the muffins on their e-commerce site.
The "Muffin Man" and his love for the chocolate muffins have created a viral sensation that has taken over the 2024 Paris Olympics. The world is watching the Games, and with Christiansen's captivating videos, the internet has taken an interest in this seemingly ordinary, but truly incredible, chocolate treat.
