Anthony Ammirati faced disappointment after his “big” bulge cost him an Olympic medal in a dramatic and unexpected turn of events.
The French pole vaulter went viral over the weekend after failing to clear the bar because his manhood got in the way, eliminating him from the competition at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
“It’s a big disappointment,” Ammirati told the French Athletics Federation.
The 21-year-old appeared to have successfully cleared his 5.70m target when his package hit the crossbar on his way down, sending the bar tumbling to the ground with him.
“I’m a bit gutted because I didn’t miss anything on the third attempt at 5.70m,” he continued. “What I did miss was a bit of jumping in training to fine-tune the settings. Just a technical session.”
Ammirati, who had dealt with injuries leading up to the qualifying track and field event, felt “100 percent physically” before the attempt but admitted he was “missing a bit of pole vault.”
“The conditions were good. It’s the first time I’ve started a competition without any stress,” he explained. “As I was a total outsider, I only had one goal: to interact with the audience. I was almost there.”
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Although Ammirati explained where he went wrong, he did not directly mention the incident that had everyone talking. Commentators remained silent as they watched the moment replayed in slow motion.
After an awkward pause, one correspondent asked another anchor to explain what had gone wrong. “[The issue] was on the way down,” they replied simply.
Social media users were also left shocked by the incident, with many taking to X to make jokes about Ammirati’s “BDE.”
“When you’re about to win an Olympic medal but your massive d—k gets in the way while the whole world watches in slow motion,” one user wrote.
“oh he brought that baguette to the games,” another fan cheekily commented, while a third joked, “He’s going to stroll out of this Olympics with more ladies’ phone numbers than medals!”
The mishap cost Ammirati a potential Olympic medal as he did not advance to Monday’s men’s pole vault final, officially finishing in 12th place. The outcome was particularly surprising given that Ammirati had won gold at the World Athletics U20 Championships in 2022.
Despite the unfortunate incident, Ammirati’s sense of humor and sportsmanship remain intact as he continues to focus on his athletic career.
