Olympic ski jumper disqualified due to boot size

For Michael Jordan, it had to be the shoes. But for an Olympic ski jumper on Sunday, it was his shoes that proved decisive for his participation in the 2026 Winter Games.

Austrian ski jumper Daniel Tschofenig arrived at the Milan Cortina Games as one of the favorites to possibly win a gold medal in large hill ski jumping after winning a World Cup gold medal during the 2024-25 season.

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Tschofenig, however, was disqualified from the event because his boots did not meet Olympic requirements. His boots were four millimeters larger than the norm.

“I used new shoes in training, which I didn’t like very much, but I kept them,” he explained to AFP. “Unfortunately, I was naive and didn’t check the sizes. It was incredibly stupid of me.”

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A drone follows Austria’s Daniel Tschofenig as he soars through the air during his first jump in the men’s individual normal hill ski jumping event at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Predazzo, Italy, Monday, Feb. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

The penalty was handed down after qualifying for the final.

Slovenia’s Domen Prevc won the gold medal in this event with a total of 301.8 points. Japan’s Ren Nikaido won the silver medal and Poland’s Kacper Tomasiak won the bronze medal.

Tschofenig’s Austrian teammate Jan Horl finished in fifth place.

Daniel Tschofenig of Austria goes down the ramp during his practice jump in the men’s normal hill ski jumping individual event at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Predazzo, Italy, Monday, February 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

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It will now be back to the World Cup and training for the 2030 Games for Tschofenig. He has more than 20 podium finishes in World Cup competitions and was among the team event medalists at the World Championships in 2025 and 2023.