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The Guardian
4 days ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Suited and booted: ski jumpers disqualified as kit chaos returns to sport
Ski jumping has become mired in more controversy with six months to go until the Winter Olympics, after the first high-level competition of the new season was marred by numerous athletes being disqualified over ill‑fitting suits. The governing body said it was 'perfectly normal'. The sport was rocked in March by the discovery of illegally altered suits on the Norwegian team at the world championships. The International Ski Federation investigated officials and athletes over those changes that could help the wearer to soar through the air for longer thanks to the suit's larger surface area. On Monday, the Olympic gold medallists Marius Lindvik and Johann André Forfang, and three staff members on the Norway men's team, were charged with ethics violation as part of an investigation into 'equipment manipulation'. Lindvik's gold medal in the men's normal hill event at the Trondheim world championships, and Norway's bronze in the men's team event on the large hill, are at risk. On Saturday at the first event of the 2025-26 season – a summer Grand Prix event on an artificial surface in France – six male ski jumpers were also disqualified because of suit issues such as waist size and three more were 'not permitted to start'. Another jumper from Japan was blocked from competing as the Grand Prix continued on Sunday. The federation confirmed it is treating the spate of disqualifications as the natural result of tightening up the rules after the Norwegian suit scandal. The FIS race director, Sandro Pertile, said he did not think anyone was trying to cheat and that fewer disqualifications would occur as teams became accustomed to the rules. Making specialised ski jumping equipment is 'a fairly complicated matter', he said. 'It's perfectly normal for teams to need some time to adapt to the new situation after such comprehensive changes to the equipment regulations. Some cope with it straight away, others find it difficult at first,' Pertile said. 'It's also important to highlight that these disqualifications are clearly a result of technical inadequacies – there's no sign whatsoever of ill intent from the teams.' The FIS indicated that a further nine men and five women did not compete after a 'technical approval' process, though it was not clear if all of those cases involved their suits. Five of those 14 were on the USA team, which did not respond immediately to a request for comment. Among those disqualified on Saturday was Norway's Kristoffer Eriksen Sundal, who had previously been provisionally suspended this year after the world championships. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion The FIS indicated it will remain rigorous in its checks through the Olympic season but expects to find athletes wearing increasingly snug, and therefore legal, suits. 'The teams know that they have our full support, and we expect the number of disqualifications to decrease significantly in the coming weeks,' Pertile said. 'With that said, we will remain strict and precise with equipment check the whole season long; there is no room for exceptions.'
National Post
4 days ago
- Sport
- National Post
Norwegians charged over 'manipulation' in ski jumping's suit-cheating saga
Two Olympic gold medalist ski jumpers and three staffers on the powerful Norway men's team were charged with ethics violations Monday after an investigation into alleged tampering with ski suits at the world championships. Article content The International Ski and Snowboard Federation said star ski jumpers Marius Lindvik and Johann Andre Forfang, two coaches and a member of the service staff were formally charged as part of an investigation into 'equipment manipulation' at the Nordic worlds Norway hosted in March. Article content Article content Illegally modified suits can help athletes fly further with more aerodynamic resistance. Article content The allegations — backed by video footage and quick confessions by team officials — shook the tight-knit communities of ski jumping and Norwegian sports when they emerged on the final weekend in Trondheim. Article content No timetable was given for hearings or verdicts in a case that intensifies less than six months before the next Winter Olympics open in northern Italy. Article content Bans, fines and disqualification of results are on the slate of punishments open to the FIS Ethics Committee, the governing body said in a statement. Article content Lindvik's gold medal in the men's normal hill event at the worlds held in Trondheim, plus Norway's bronze in the men's team event on the large hill are clearly at risk. Article content FIS said the investigation conducted 38 witness interviews and examined 88 pieces of evidence, and that no one else will be charged in the case. Article content Lindvik and Forfang, who both were in the team that took bronze, denied involvement in March though were disqualified from the individual large hill event and suspended by FIS for the rest of the season. Their charges were signed off by the FIS ruling council, the governing body said. Article content Article content The 27-year-old Lindvik has been expected to defend his Olympic title next year in the men's large hill event at the Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Games. Forfang, now 30, took team gold on the large hill and individual silver on the normal hill at the 2018 Olympics held in South Korea. Article content Admissions of guilt were made in March by head coach Magnus Brevik and equipment manager Adrian Livelten, who said suits were altered only before the men's large hill event. Article content 'We regret it like dogs, and I'm terribly sorry that this happened,' Brevik said at the time. A third team staffer, Thomas Lobben, also is now charged. Article content The manipulation was to increase the size of suits pre-approved and microchipped by FIS, and was captured on secretly filmed footage. It led to formal protests from the Austria, Slovenia and Poland teams. Article content The alterations could be confirmed only by tearing apart the seams of the crotch area on the Norwegian ski suits. Article content The case will be judged by three members of the ethics panel which must reach verdicts 'no later than 30 days after the hearing process is concluded,' FIS said. Article content
New York Times
14-03-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Norwegian Ski Jumpers Suspended for Illegal Alterations to Their Suits
There is a long tradition of teams trying to get an edge in ski jumping, making tweaks to equipment to try to gain a few feet in distance, or even a few inches. But a recent alteration to the crotch area of a team's ski suits went too far. Five Norwegian ski jumpers and three officials were suspended by the International Ski and Snowboard Federation this week, accused of cheating after altering the crotches of the team's ski suits. Some of the officials soon confessed to the scheme. The officials are accused of engaging in 'illegal equipment manipulation' at the Nordic World Ski Championships in Trondheim, Norway, last week. The suspensions will continue while an investigation takes place. The suspended Norwegian athletes are Marius Lindvik, a gold medalist at the Beijing Olympics in 2022; Johann Andre Forfang, a gold medalist at Pyeongchang in 2018; Robin Pedersen; Kristoffer Eriksen Sundal; and Robert Johansson. Lindvik also won a gold medal at the world championships days before the suspensions. The federation seized all of the ski jumping suits used by Norway at the event. An inspection of those suits 'raised additional suspicions of manipulation' of the suits used by the men's team, the federation said. No irregularities were found in the women's team's suits. The ski jumping federation said it planned to toughen its 'suit control policy' at future events. The international federation did not immediately make an official available for an interview on Friday. 'What we have done is manipulate or modify the jump suits in such a way that it violates the regulations,' one of the suspended officials, the team coach, Magnus Brevig, told the Norwegian news media. 'It was a deliberate act. Therefore, it is cheating. It was a joint decision. I should have stopped it.' Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. Already a subscriber? Log in. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Sky News
12-03-2025
- Sport
- Sky News
Norwegian ski jumpers suspended in cheating scandal over modified suits
Two Olympic gold medallist ski jumpers have been suspended after their ski suits were deliberately manipulated to make them more aerodynamic. Three staff members embroiled in the cheating scandal - including the head coach - have also been stood down from their jobs. Athletes Marius Lindvik, 26, and Johann Andre Forfang, 29, will now not compete in a World Cup event that starts in Oslo this Thursday. The pair had denied involvement since the allegations emerged over the weekend - but were suspended on Wednesday pending an investigation by the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS). Initially, both athletes were backed by the Norwegian team - until their head coach, Magnus Brevig, and equipment manager Adrian Livelten, confessed. It has emerged that team officials manipulated pre-approved and microchipped suits to increase their size and improve aerodynamics to help athletes fly further. It was revealed in footage secretly filmed from behind a curtain then sent by a whistleblower to international media. A FIS official said the illegal alterations were only confirmed by tearing apart the seams of the crotch area on the offending ski suits. The FIS has seized all the suits worn by the Norway teams at the world championships. Head coach Mr Brevig told local media he had "consented to the suspension" and said he was "terribly sorry for what we did". "We have manipulated or modified the jumpsuits in a way that violates the regulations - ergo, cheated," he said. The athletes had already been disqualified from the large hill event on Saturday - days after Mr Lindvik became world champion, winning silver. Norway, where the cheating scandal emerged, always scores high in Transparency International's anti-corruption index and tied for fifth in the most recent global ranking. Stine Korsen, chair of the ski jumping committee, said that Norway would welcome an investigation by the FIS into the cheating. He said: "We take this matter very seriously and recognise that equipment has been deliberately manipulated in violation of FIS regulations in order to gain an advantage in the competition."
Reuters
12-03-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Ski jumping-Norwegian ski jumpers suspended amid equipment investigation
March 12 (Reuters) - Ski jumpers Marius Lindvik and Johann Andre Forfang have been provisionally suspended, along with three Norwegian team officials, the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) announced on Wednesday. The Norwegian ski jumping team are under investigation for allegedly manipulating equipment during last Saturday's men's large hill event in the World Ski Championships in Trondheim, Norway. Lindvik had finished second but was denied the silver medal following his disqualification after an equipment inspection, along with compatriot Forfang who had finished fourth. "The only thing that matters to FIS is to leave this process 100% convinced that the sport is free from any form of manipulation," FIS Secretary General Michel Vion said in a statement. "We will leave no stone unturned to ensure that respect and fairness prevail – in this specific case and across our entire ecosystem." The Norwegian Ski Federation had earlier suspended two staff members, including head coach Magnus Brevik, after admitting that the national ski jumping team had manipulated jumpsuits to gain an advantage. FIS added they had seized all Norwegian jumpsuits from the Championships for re-inspection as part of an ongoing investigation.
