Arthur Nory reunited with stolen medals

2016 Olympic bronze medallist and reigning World high bar champion Arthur Nory has been reunited with his stolen medals.

The Brazilian gymnastics star took to social media late last week, saying that his house had been burgled while he was away at training. His Olympic bronze and World gold were not taken, but the team gold medal and all-around and horizontal bar silvers from the 2019 Pan American Games were stolen.

Panam Sports had previously stated that they were happy to replace the medals, but that wasn't needed.

“Recovered medals,” Team Brasil tweeted Wednesday morning. “The [Military Police of the State of Sao Paulo] found Arthur Nory’s medals!”

According to Brazilian media reports, the medals were found in a box inside a waste bin in Osasco, a town near Sao Paulo.

"The thieves wrote a letter to say sorry and even cleaned the medals," the Brazilian Olympic Committee account added in its post.

“Thank you very much!” wrote Nory in a post on his own Instagram. “I’m shaking all over and you can’t imagine what a thrill it is.

“Gratitude to all,” he said in conclusion.

Nory, who is half-Japanese and half-Brazilian, told Olympic Channel last February he was dreaming of a second 'home' Olympics.

“Part of my family, my mother’s family, are from Japan, from Okinawa,” he explained. “My blood is half-Japanese, half-Brazilian. So it will be amazing to compete at home again."

With the Games pushed back a year, Nory took advantage of the time and had surgery on his left shoulder in 2020. His recovery is going well, according to posts on his Instagram.

"The scars remain, but the willpower to improve continues," he wrote on Instagram on 21 September 2020.