Aug 6
French Pole Vaulter Opens Up about the 'Big Disappointment' of Falling Short at the Olympics
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 2 MIN.
Olympic pole vaulter Anthony Ammirati fell just short of athletic glory when his generously proportioned anatomy came into contact with the crossbar. Ammirati opened up about the agony of that defeat.
Ammirati "spoke for the first time on the disappointment of not medaling after his privates got in the way of his performance," the New York Post reported.
The athlete called the brush with bad luck, which was captured on a broadcast seen by sport fans around the world, "a big disappointment" in comments to the French Athletics Federation, the Post relayed.
"I'm a bit gutted because I didn't miss anything on the third attempt at 5.70m," Ammirati explained. "What I did miss was a bit of jumping in training to fine-tune the settings."
Whatever the reason, the "21-year-old missed his 5.70m target on his third attempt when his bulge knocked down the pole, which led to his downfall ahead of the finals on Monday," the Post recalled.
Sidestepping the incident itself, Ammirati added, "It's the first time I've started a competition without any stress. As I was a total outsider, I only had one goal: to interact with the audience. I was almost there."
Instead, the well-built Olympic competitor inadvertently interacted with the crossbar, knocking it to the ground.
"The instance also left commentators speechless," the Post noted. "They were audibly flustered at the sight of how the pole fell, scrambling to acknowledge what had happened."
If laughter is the best medicine, Gay Twitter did its part to soothe the disappointing turn of events, lighting up with comments that were humorous, sympathetic, and admiring by turns.
Given the presence of other Olympic athletes on sites like OnlyFans, social media commentators envisioned ways for Ammirati to turn loss into financial gain.
Another offer of monetary solace came from a porn site that offered Ammirati a substantial sum to turn the viral moment into another kind of fame.
TMZ Sports reported that it had "obtained a letter from popular XXX site CamSoda" that sought to tempt the athlete with a $250,000 payday "to show off his famous junk on camera."
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
