World champion hammer thrower Pawel Fajdek reportedly paid for a taxi fare with his gold medal following a drunken night out in Beijing.

The Polish competitor is believed to have had a few drinks while celebrating his gold-medal success at the World Athletics Championships on Sunday.

According to media outlet Tencent, the 26-year-old informed police that the medal was nowhere to be found when he woke up on Monday morning.

The report adds that police officers managed to find the taxi driver, who revealed that Fajdek paid for the ride home by offering up his prized possession.

Fajdek, who was the youngest defending gold medallist at the Championships, took the top spot on the podium with a throw of 80.88 metres.