The Eiffel Tower in Paris is full of rust and needs complete repairs.
But the wrought iron milestone will only have a cosmetic painting job before the 2024 Olympics in the capital, according to confidential reports quoted by French magazine Marianne.
The 324 m (1,064 ft) tower is among the most visited tourist sites in the world and hosts about six million visitors each year.
It was built by Gustave Eiffel in the late 19th century.
But confidential expert reports quoted by Marianne suggest she is in a deficient, rust-filled state.
“It’s simple, if Gustave Eiffel visited the site he would have a heart attack,” an unnamed manager of the tower told the magazine.
Eiffel Tower data you probably didn’t know
The tower was designed as the centerpiece of the 1889 Paris World’s Fair and was intended to commemorate the centenary of the French Revolution, as well as to showcase France’s industrial power.
It took two years to build, using 10,100 tons of iron, assembled from 18,000 sections and joined with 2.5 million rivets.
It was to be demolished after 20 years, but equipped with a radio antenna and a wireless telegraph transmitter, the French government decided it was too useful to be demolished.
During World War II, Hitler is said to have wanted to dismantle the tower, but he clearly survived and the French resistance fighters struck a small blow for freedom by cutting the elevator wires, forcing the occupying soldiers to climb the 1,665 steps to fly a Nazi flag. from above.
The tower is currently being repainted at a cost of 60 million euros (£ 51.7 million) in preparation for the 2024 Olympics. This is the twentieth time it has been repainted.
It was assumed that 30% of the tower had been stripped and then two new layers would have been applied, but the delays caused by the COVID pandemic and the presence of lead in the old paint means that only 5% will be treated, said Marianne.
The company that oversees the tower, Société d’Exploitation de la Tour Eiffel (SETE), is reluctant to close it for long because of lost tourist revenue, the magazine adds.