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For Michael Jordan, it had to be the shoes. But for an Olympic ski jumper on Sunday, it was his boots that proved to be consequential for his time at the 2026 Winter Games.
Austrian ski jumper Daniel Tschofenig came into the Milan Cortina Games as one of the favorites to possibly take a gold medal in large hill ski jumping after he won a World Cup gold medal during the 2024-25 season.
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Daniel Tschofenig, of Austria, gets ready for a jump during a ski jumping, men’s normal hill, training session,at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Predazzo, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Tschofenig, however, was disqualified from the event as his boots didn’t meet Olympic requirements. His boots were four millimeters over the standard.
“I used new shoes in training, which, by the way, I wasn’t very happy with, but I kept them,” he told AFP. “Unfortunately, I was naive and didn’t check the sizes. That was incredibly stupid of me.”
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A drone follows Daniel Tschofenig, of Austria, as he soars through the air during his first round jump of the ski jumping men’s normal hill individual at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Predazzo, Italy, Monday, Feb. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
The penalty was issued after he qualified for the finals.
Slovenia’s Domen Prevc picked up a gold medal in the event with a total of 301.8 points. Japan’s Ren Nikaido attained the silver and Poland’s Kacper Tomasiak got the bronze.
Tschofenig’s Austrian teammate Jan Horl finished in fifth place.
Daniel Tschofenig, of Austria, goes down the ramp during his trial jump of the ski jumping men’s normal hill individual at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Predazzo, Italy, Monday, Feb. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
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It will be back to the World Cup and training for the 2030 Games for Tschofenig now. He has more than 20 podium finishes in World Cup competitions and was among the medalists for team events in the World Championships in 2025 and 2023.
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