Paralympic athlete was banned from race after breaking little-known tattoo rule
With all of the excitement surrounding the Paralympics being on the horizon, fans are remembering rule breaks from previous years.
It seems all major sporting events have rules they're not willing to budge on.
With the events of the 2024 Paris Olympics still firmly in our minds, we're left reminiscing on all of the strict rules and drama that saw people having to leave the Olympic Village with no medals.
Luna Bulmahn, of Team Germany, was sensationally axed from competing this year after making public complaints regarding being unable to race alongside her boyfriend, Jean Paul Bredau.
Advert
It's left us all wondering what kind of rules will be broken at the forthcoming Paralympic Games. It's all the drama, Mick!
Let us cast your minds back to the fate of British swimmer Josef Craig who was disqualified in 2016.
The then-19-year-old athlete was in Madeira, competing in the IPC European Championships.
He had started out strong - winning his heat in the men’s S8 100m freestyle, but was disqualified before he could experience the glory of the final.
If you're unaware of this story, you might be thinking - what unforgivable thing did he do?
It all comes down to tattoos...
The swimmer had the Olympic rings and Team GB lion’s head tattooed on the left side of his chest and covered it up for the S8 400m freestyle heats.
After leaving it exposed before reaching the final, he was disqualified.
It turns out Craig had breached official regulations in relation to advertising.
In 2016, the International Paralympic Committee spokesman gave the following statement: "Body advertising is not allowed in any way whatsoever and that includes the Olympic rings. The athlete did not wear a cover and was therefore disqualified.
"All teams are informed of the advertising policy at a technical meeting prior to competition so it wasn't as if they had not been reminded about the rules."
Craig went on to qualify for the Rio 2016 Paralympics and ended up taking home the bronze in the 100m S8 freestyle.
This time, however, he had covered his Olympic rings tattoo with a Union Jack.
The Paralympic committee has since clarified that athletes will not be disqualified at the Paris 2024 Games for having tattoos of Olympic rings.
A spokesperson said: "We will not be banning athletes for Olympic rings tattoos at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
"The policy changed after Tokyo 2020. There are rules around third party branding tattoos."
Craig, who has cerebral palsy, is now 27 years old and retired.
He said of his decision to become a coach: "It's time for a new challenge. To be able to help individuals gain an important life skill and also go on to achieve will be really rewarding."
He has also been open about suffering from anxiety, bipolar and depression in his career.
Craig said: “I went through a lot and for a long time, I now want to use the platform and influence I have to help those facing mental issues.
"I want to use my journey as evidence that it is possible to turn things around no matter how bad a situation may appear."
Topics: Sport, Paralympics
Kya Buller