Because of the Olympic record? The controversy over the 'speech magnification gate' is raging. "It's not a prohibited drug, but..."

*This content was translated by AI.

Ahead of the opening of the 2026 Milan-Cortina D'Ampezzo Winter Olympics, an unprecedented controversy over genital enlargement in ski jumping has emerged. Suspicions that male ski jumpers inject fillers into their genitals to increase their flying distance have led the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to suggest a direct investigation.

British media 'BBC' reported on the 6th (Korea Standard Time) that "WADA could launch an investigation if there is evidence that ski jumpers inject hyaluronic acid into their genitals to improve their performance."

The controversy began in January when the leading German newspaper Bild raised suspicions that ski jumpers inject hyaluronic acid into their genitals to increase their volume before measuring their suits.

Hyaluronic acid is not a prohibited sport drug. However, it is known that when injected into the genital organs, it has an enlargement effect.

It is a kind of trick to improve the record. According to ski jump regulations, the size of the suit is manufactured to match the size of the athlete's body. The larger the volume of the genital region, the larger the surface area of the suit. The BBC quoted an official from the International Ski Federation (FIS) as saying, "Even if the suit's surface area increases by 5%, the flight distance increases significantly." "Every 1cm of the suit is important," said Sandro Pertill, FIS Ski Jump Race Director.

In this regard, WADA Secretary-General Olivier Nigli said, "We do not know the detailed mechanisms of ski jumping, but if related suspicions are revealed to the surface, we will see if they are related to doping." WADA President Vitolt Vanka also said, "Ski jumping is a very popular sport in my home country of Poland. We will take a close look at this issue," he promised.

The Guardian also highlighted the so-called "Pennisgate" controversy. Citing the research results of the scientific journal Frontiers, the media analyzed, "Even if the circumference of the suit increases by only 2cm, air resistance decreases by 4% and lift increases by 5%, which is a number that can increase the jump distance by about 5.8m."

Bild exploited the fact that the data is based on the lowest point of the crotch when measuring with a 3D scanner, revealing that it uses not only filler injection but also clay in underwear.

This is not the first controversy over suit manipulation in the ski jump world. In August, Norwegian Olympic medalists Marius Lindvik and Johan Andre Porfang were suspended for three months after they were found to have manipulated the crotch of their suit to expand their surface area during last year's world championships. At the time, three Norwegian coaches were also suspended for 18 months for trying to cheat the system.

FIS drew the line through global media 'Reuters' that "no concrete evidence has yet been found that certain athletes used hyaluronic acid to improve their performance." However, WADA says it can regulate athletes' health and if a way that violates the spirit of sports is confirmed.

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*This content was translated by AI.