Bidets Are Confusing Visitors at the 2026 Winter Olympics
Bidets are now, again, take a moment. As international athletes and journalists descend on northern Italy for the 2026 Winter Olympics, some participants are wondering about the extra equipment in their restrooms. Europeans, who were familiar with oval basins, found themselves equally perplexed by their confusion. Cultural exchanges often experience setbacks.
Last week, American channel Alicia Lewis posted a TikTok asking if the Italian bidet in her room was indeed a bidet. An Associated Press article noted that “this device is de rigeur in Italian residences but often leaves visitors perplexed, including some athletes whose bedroom videos have caused double-takes.” The confusion on social media has largely cleared up, but interest in bidets is on the rise.
When New York City’s new mayor, Zohran Mamdani, moved into Gracie Mansion last month, he said he had an “ambitious hope” of installing bidets there. WIRED has also been recommending them for a while.
Yet they remain a mystery to many. It therefore seems only right to offer a little explanation to the uninitiated.
Although the French were particularly opposed to the bidet, the tool appears to have been invented in France in the early 18th century. However, the identity of its inventor remains unknown. The name comes from a transalpine term designating ponies, small but vigorous versatile horses (of bider“trot”). Basically, it is a reference to the straddled position adopted to perform the most hygienic practices.
The first evidence of the existence of the bidet in Italy dates from around 1720. Proof of its widespread adoption came in the second half of the century when the Queen of the Two Sicilies, Mary Caroline of Habsburg-Lorraine, required the installation of these devices – then a simple basin with leg-shaped supports – in her private apartments in the palace of Caserta.
Yet the bidet spread across Italy only in fits and starts. In the 20th century, thanks to advances in indoor plumbing, it moved from the bedroom to the bathroom. But its greatest diffusion occurred after the Second World War, notably after it had been made compulsory by law in every private household since 1975.
Today, the bidet is still quite common in Greece, Turkey and Finland (although often in the “shower bidet” version where the shower head is next to the toilet). Bidets are also popular in Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and North Africa.
In Japan, the bidet and toilet have recently merged to form the “washlet”, equipped with automatic and adjustable jets from inside the bowl itself.
The newfound sociocultural success of the bidet is accompanied by a new environmental awareness. When Mamdani extolled the virtues of the device, the New York Department of Environmental Protection posted a video on social media emphasizing “more bidets = fewer wet wipes.” While many people opt for wet wipes instead of toilet paper, using bidets could save on the amount of tissues flushed.
Although it seems unlikely that bidets will become widespread in the United States, they are spreading and show no signs of extinction.
This story was originally published in CABLE Italy. It was translated from Italian.
