Jason Colby of Team United States during a Men's Normal Hill training session for the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games at Predazzo Ski Jumping Stadium on 5 February 2026 in Val di Fiemme, Italy. (Photo: Alex Pantling / Getty Images) 
Olympic doping chiefs say they will be on the lookout for any evidence that male ski jumpers are artificially enlarging their penises in a bid to manipulate one of the sport’s rules and gain an aerodynamic advantage.
World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) Director-General Olivier Niggli, speaking at a press conference in Milan before the 2026 Winter Olympics, said Wada would explore whether the alleged practice constituted doping.
Niggli was responding to questions, following a report in German newspaper Bild, which raised fears of some male ski jumpers attempting to manipulate the 3D body‑scanning measurements used to size competition suits by temporarily enlarging their penises.
Ski jumpers undergo a full body scan to ensure their skin-tight suits do not have extra material that would give them more lift as they soar through the air.
/file/attachments/orphans/GettyImages-2260099958_329571.jpg "Kacper Tomasiak of Team Poland in flight during the Men’s Normal Hill training training session for the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games at Predazzo Ski Jumping Stadium. (Photo: Alex Slitz / Getty Images)")
The crotch of a ski jumper’s suit is allowed to run to the bottom of the athlete’s genitals, meaning an enlarged penis would give them more potentially performance-enhancing material.
The Bild report said the newspaper had discovered insider talk of athletes injecting hyaluronic acid into their penis to alter their suit measurement point, thereby securing a larger, more aerodynamic suit for the duration of the season.
Niggli said Wada had no indication the alleged practice was taking place, and stressed that Wada only intervened when a method of cheating fell within the definition of doping.
“I am not aware of the details of ski jumping and how this can improve (the performance), but if any sign was to come to the surface, we will look at it. I haven’t heard about that until you mentioned it,” he told reporters in Milan.
“If it is actually doping related – we don’t do other means of enhancing performance – but our committee (annually reviewing banned substances) will certainly see whether it falls into this category,” he added.
The International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) did not respond to a request for comment.
The issue has drawn attention partly because suit manipulation has previously led to sanctions in the sport.
/file/attachments/orphans/GettyImages-2260128037_218265.jpg "The US's Kevin Bickner in training for the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games. (Photo: Tom Weller / Getty Images)")
Two of Norway’s Olympic medallists, Marius Lindvik and Johann Andre Forfang, were suspended for three months last year after their team was found to have secretly adjusted seams around the crotch area of their suits at the 2025 World Ski Championships.
Three members of the coaching staff were also banned.
Wada President Witold Bańka when asked about the reports on Thursday, 6 February 2026, responded with a smile, saying ski jumping was very popular in his native Poland and that he would look into the matter. Reuters/DM