A Japanese mayor apologized Thursday for biting the Olympic gold medal of a softball player. Nagoya mayor Takashi Kawamura had praised athlete, Miu Goto, during a public media event. He asked her to put the medal around his neck. Kawamura then bit into it.

Biting a medal in front of journalists and photographers has become a common pose for Olympic medalists. However, it is only for the winners themselves, not others.

“I’m really sorry that I hurt the treasure of the gold medalist,” Kawamura told reporters Thursday.

The mayor said the medal was undamaged, though he offered to pay for the cost of a new one.

Goto, however, has accepted the International Olympic Committee’s offer of a replacement, according to Japanese media reports.

The scene broadcast on television prompted thousands of complaints to city hall. Some Olympians said they treat their medals as treasures and that it was disrespectful and unacceptable for Kawamura to bite one.

“I would cry if that happened to me,” said another athlete, Naohisa Takato. “I handle my own gold medal so gently that I would not scratch it.”

Q5: What does the news reports say about the Japanese mayor Takashi Kawamura?
Q6: What did mayor Takashi Kawamura offer to do?
Q7: What did some Olympians say they would do with their medals?