Crotch-enlarging scandal ahead of Winter Olympics leads to rule change

Size matters, especially when it comes to ski jumping.

And an enlargement scandal will now see new rules at the Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo.

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At last year’s world championships, it was Norway who took matters into their own hands to try and manipulate a win.

In ski jumping, suits are fitted to each athlete but, rather than the figure hugging attire, rules dictate that there is a circumference of 4 centimetres added to each uniform.

A study entitled ‘Influence of suit size and air permeability on performance in ski jumping’ published in Frontiers showed increasing the suit size by 2 cm of additional circumference increased lift and drag force by 5 per cent and four per cent, respectively.

This could lead to an average jump length difference of 5.6 metres.

In sport, fine margins matter, however the Norwegians implicated in the scandal were caught red-handed and shopped by whistleblowers.

They made changes to the crotch area on suits of two male jumpers but were caught on video, rocking the sport to its core.

Even a spokesperson for the international ski federation, FIS, couldn’t hide his unhappiness.

“There have been disqualifications in the past, many. It’s part of the sport,” said Bruno Sassi.

“But there had never been that kind of a brazen attempt to not only bend the rules, but downright do something… to cheat the system in a way that it is very different from simply having a suit that is a tad too long or a tad too loose.”

Meanwhile, the ski jumping community also frowned upon the incident.

“This is doping just with a different needle,” three-time German Olympic champion Jens Weissflog said in an interview with newspaper Bild.

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After the discovery, Norway head coach Magnus Brevik, assistant coach Thomas Lobben, and staff member Adrian Livelten were banned from the sport for 18 months.

They had tampered with the suits before the men’s large hill event, adding extra material to the crotch which would add surface area to help during takeoff.

The alterations were hard to spot by the naked eye and race director Sandro Pertile added they had to ‘destroy the suits’ to find the adjustments, which also added weight and lowered the crotch of the athlete.

“We regret it like dogs, and I’m terribly sorry that this happened,” Brevig said.

“I don’t really have anything else to say other than that we got carried away in our bubble.”

The attempted rule violation cost Olympic large hill ski jump gold medallist Marius Lindvik a silver at the world championship.

He and teammate Johann Andre Forfang, also a two-time Olympic medallist were handed a three-month suspension.

AFP

Why the crotch enlargement and what are the new rules?

Co-author of the ‘Influence of suit size and air permeability on performance in ski jumping’ study, Soren Muller said: “In most cases, enlargement of the suit is beneficial.

“However, the area stretched by the V-position of the legs in the crotch area is the most noticeable and also offers the greatest advantage.”

Now the FIS have employed a new equipment expert, former Austrian ski jumper Mathias Hafele.

“He used to make a living off of trying to make the most out of the rule book,” Sassi said. “Now he’s on our side putting together the new rule book.”

Two FIS controllers and a doctor will use 3D measurements to evaluate athletes and their uniforms.

Suits will then go through a control checkpoint where tamper-proof microchips are attached, while scanners will later be able to tell if they have remained in place.

There will then be a yellow and red card system for violations which could lead to disqualifications.