A gear mishap led to two disqualifications at the Tesero Cross Country Stadium, and this time, it’s South Korea.

According to Reuters, a pair of South Korean cross-country skiers, Han Dasom and Lee Eui-Jin, were disqualified on February 10 after a routine kit examination by the International Ski and Snowboard Federation, aka FIS.

The two skiers entered the Olympics ranked 157 and 158. But they could not advance to the knockout races due to the examination results. The FIS concluded that the athletes’ skis contained Fluorinated ‍wax, a harmful chemical to the environment and human bodies.

For context, Fluor is a non-biodegradable PFAS chemical that the body cannot break down. Studies published in the Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry and the International Journal of Molecular Sciences have linked long-term use to several health issues, such as liver and kidney damage, immune system disruption, etc.

Initially, this Fluorinated wax was famous among sailors. It contains a water and grease repellent proportion, which helps the sailboats to glide easily. Later on, it came into skiing in the 1980s, as per the FSI.

However, the FSI banned this “forever chemical” in 2019, which took effect in the 2023-24 season. Following the disqualification of the South Korean athletes, The Chosun Daily presented the association’s remark.

What Was the Korean Association’s Response to This?

As per The Chosun Daily, the Korea Ski & Snowboard Association denied any purposeful wrongdoing via a spokesperson, who talked to Newsis. They said that the athletes have used kits from the same supplier before, and such an incident never occurred.

“The athletes’ products are not fluorine wax. They tested negative in all previous international competitions with no prior issues. We are also perplexed”, they said.

“Such cases occur occasionally, and it seems we’ve been caught this time. It’s absurd,” they added more, “We will consult experts from wax and ski manufacturers to investigate whether the issue lies with the wax or skis.”

And something similar happened before as well. On February 9, Japanese veteran snowboarder Shiba Masaki was also disqualified because of the same fluorine wax testing. However, he made it clear over the socials that it was a supplier issue, since the detected wax was not from his long-term sponsor.

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Written by

Deblina Roy

Edited by

Souvik Roy