The incredible way athlete reacted when penis completely ruined chances of winning medal
One of the biggest moments of this year’s Paris Olympic Games was, without a doubt, Anthony Ammirati’s particularly memorable pole vault attempt.
When the French athlete arrived at the games last month, no doubt he was hoping to go down in history by landing a medal for his nation.
And while his attempt would go on to become one of the most talked-about moments from this year's games, the 21-year-old could never have predicted the reason why.
What went wrong with Anthony Ammirati’s pole vault?
After the 21-year-old cleared 5.40 and 5.60 meter bars with ease, it seemed he was poised to clear the 5.70 meter pole.
However, his Olympic dreams were crushed as the bar came crashing down with him.
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And it wasn't until watching the replays in slow motion that it eventually dawned on viewers what exactly had gone wrong – specifically, Ammirati's penis getting stuck on the pole and subsequently knocking it off, which was a mishap that saw him land 12th place.
Anthony Ammirati speaks out
Initially, Ammirati ignored the elephant in the room and instead commented on his loss more generally, telling the French Athletics Federation: “I’m a bit gutted, because I didn’t miss anything on the third attempt at 5.70 m.
“What I did miss was a bit of jumping in training to fine-tune the settings. Just a technical session.
“I was 100 percent physically, but I was missing a bit of pole vault."
He added: "The conditions were good. 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.”
Seeing the funny side
He now seems to be able to laugh about what happened, having subtly addressed the viral moment on social media.
Swedish track and field Olympian Armand Duplantis called attention to the now-iconic moment, commenting on Ammirati's Instagram post: "The viral sensation", alongside a fire emoji.
Ammirati then responded with four crying laughing emojis.
It's good to know he sees the funny side - and is hopefully now just enjoying all of the attention following all the disappointment.
An x-rated offer
Since going viral, Ammirati's unlikely mishap has brought him worldwide fame.
In fact, he’s even caught the attention of several pornographic sites, with one in particular apparently keen to sign him up.
According to reports by TMZ, x-rated website CamSoda has actually made Ammirati a pretty hefty financial offer in the hope of 'collaborating' with him.
Daryn Parker - the vice president of the adults-only site told the US news outlet: "If it was up to me, I’d award you for what everyone else saw, your talent below the belt."
Speaking directly to the Frenchman, he added: "As a lover of crotch-centric activities, I'd love to offer you up to $250,000 in exchange for a 60-minute webcam show, in which you show off your goods, minus the crossbar, of course."
Jess Hardiman