Internet abuzz as pole vaulter's crotch costs him Olympic medal

PARIS (TND) — A French pole vaulter's Olympic dreams were shattered when his private parts clipped the crossbar as he competed during the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.

AnthonyAmmirati, 21, became an internet sensation over the weekend when video circulated of him missing his target height, with his cup hitting the pole and knocking it to the floor.

Ammirati also fell to the ground.

"It's a big disappointment," Ammirati told the French Athletics Federationafter the mishap.

After four attempts, thetrack and field star finished with a combined score of 5.60 and in 12th position, which was not enough to advance to the final.

I'm a little disappointed, because I didn't miss anything on the third try at 5.70 m. What I'm missing is a bit of jumping around in training to fine-tune the settings. Just a technical session," Ammirati told the French Athletics Federation. "I had to give up on the last two, because following a small grade 1 in the adductor, I prioritized the race. I was 100% physically, but I was missing a little pole. The conditions were good. This is the first time that I attacked a competition without any stress. As I was a total outsider, I only had one objective: to play with the public. I was almost there."

The internet quickly began buzzing about the incident, with footage of the performance going viral on social media. Video posts often included jokes aboutAmmirati's crotch.

"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 person wrote.

An adult entertainment company offered him $250,000 to show off his genitals in a pornography movie.