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Good morning! Watch your stitching today. Inside:
Scandals and Stitches: The ski-jumping scandal we never expected
I want to start this moment by apologizing to our tailor friends, or anyone in the alterations industry. I entered this week thinking the industry was important, sure, but controversial? Scandalous, even? I underestimated that. This morning, my instinct has been proven wrong.
Look no further than Norwegian skiing for the opprobrium.
We mentioned briefly last week a controversy that landed two Norwegian ski jumpers, coaches and an equipment manager suspensions. But last night, a joint investigation from The Athletic’s Matthew Futterman and “Pablo Torre Finds Out” exposed how deep — and impactful — a few crotch stitches can be in a sport where aerodynamics are paramount.
It is a tale of shame, subterfuge and even spycraft. I picked out my biggest questions after reading and listening, and asked our investigators for their perspective:
My first thought was simple: Can a few stitches really make that big of a difference in ski jumping? And this difference was enough to potentially end multiple careers?
Pablo: “My show loves investigating cheating scandals: how people get away with it, how they get caught, and who even cares. It turns out that ski-jumping is an insanely dangerous Olympic sport that is, thanks to the laws of physics, a game of inches — centimeters, even. In which the world’s greatest dynasty plunged into scandal because of a mysterious grower … who did not want to be a show-er. (So to speak.)”
Matthew also told me that studies have shown one extra centimeter of surface area can add nearly two meters of distance on a jump. In his words, it’s “a pretty substantial advantage and serious incentive for wearing a suit with some extra leg room.”
And yes, the Norwegians are ski-jumping royalty and winter sports are fundamentally important to the Scandinavian country. It’s a huge part of this story — the shame of it all. These proud athletes (who are expected to compete at the Games next month!) got caught cheating. I wondered about any American equivalent.
Pablo: “I’ve been thinking a lot about Deflategate while making this episode. Partly because the cheaters in this story were going for the opposite effect. And partly because Matt reminded me that Tom Brady conveniently had his cell phone destroyed during the NFL’s investigation. Unfortunately for the country of Norway, they could not eradicate the tapes that caught them, red-handed. Although — as you’ll see — shame remains a voluntary sensation.”
The story is great, and it all starts with that anonymous, grainy YouTube video you see above. Two ways to consume:
More drama ahead:
News to Know
Jones, Beltrán earn Hall spots
Andruw Jones and Carlos Beltrán, two extremely cool center fielders, gained entry into the Baseball Hall of Fame yesterday, making the upcoming class a three-man crew (Jeff Kent was elected via an era committee last month). Jones may be one of the most talented people to ever play the game, a 10-time Gold Glove winner who hit 434 home runs. Beltrán hit 435 dingers and won two Silver Sluggers and three Gold Gloves. The symmetry eerily continues as the pair are just one day apart age-wise. Read more on their cases — and on the players who didn’t make it — here. Enjoy the sick Jones catches above, too.
Duke thwarted in Mensah suit
Blue Devils quarterback — well, former quarterback now — Darian Mensah roiled fans when he entered the transfer portal at the last minute Friday, less than a month after announcing his return to Duke. The school sued Mensah yesterday in order to retain the quarterback for 2026, but a judge denied that request, per Mensah’s attorney. It’s another transfer portal mess. Read our full story.
More news.
MLB owners are “raging” after Kyle Tucker signed with the Dodgers and will “100 percent” push for a salary cap, per a new explosive report from The Athletic’s Evan Drellich. Read it here.
Late-breaking MLB trade news last night: The Mets acquired center fielder Luis Robert Jr. from the White Sox in exchange for two players. See the full trade.
Mike McDaniel is heading to the Chargers as their new offensive coordinator, sources told The Athletic.
Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield had some feisty words for former Browns coach and new Falcons head man Kevin Stefanski. Spicy stuff inside.
Charles Bediako, an Alabama basketball player from 2021 to 2023, is suing the NCAA in order to rejoin the Tide three years later. He’s even played in the G League. Full details here.
Reigning NCAA men’s golf champion Michael La Sasso is leaving Ole Miss to join LIV Golf. It’s wild that he’s giving up a spot in the Masters.
Paige Bueckers scored 37 points and won $50,000 in her Unrivaled game Monday. Pretty good.
Watch Guide
📺 UCL: Liverpool at Marseille
3 p.m. ET on Paramount+
Things are antsy at Anfield, one year after a Premier League title. Mo Salah is back for this match, and it’s likely he starts. A serious matter to watch here: We published a big report this week on the controversial policing from French authorities at soccer matches, and Liverpool fans’ worry about it for this match. Read that report here.
📺 NHL: Red Wings at Maple Leafs
7 p.m. ET on TNT and HBO Max
Toronto is still grinding out of its early hole this season, while Detroit is enjoying its best campaign in a decade. Both have played well of late. Good game.
📺 NBA: Bucks at Thunder
9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN
Oklahoma City is by far the NBA’s best team, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is running away with the MVP, as Zach Harper wrote in The Bounce last week. That comes after last year’s OKC title and SGA’s MVP. Meanwhile, Milwaukee is a wreck, but a new rotation has sparked hope.
Get tickets to games like this here.
Pulse Picks
If you read one thing this morning, make it this gripping story about former MLS coach Adrian Heath, who thought he was about to interview for a coaching job in Saudi Arabia. Then he was kidnapped.
I really enjoyed Brody Miller’s fan missive from section 352 of Monday’s national championship game. If you want to know how true Indiana fans feel this week, read his story.
One last thing from Indiana’s coronation: 10 numbers that show how absurd this reality is.
Does Jimmy Butler’s ACL tear herald the end of the Warriors dynasty? Sobering.
Jason Jones has a great column on why the LeBron James MLK shoes, modeled after the Lorraine Motel — where King was assassinated — look great but miss the mark. Read it here.
Macklin Celebrini is just 19 years old. But, as Dom Luszczyszyn wrote yesterday, he’s undoubtedly in the MVP conversation.
Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: Chris Vannini’s story on why Fernando Mendoza talks like that. So good.
Most-read on the website yesterday: Our main recap of Indiana’s national title win.
📫 That’s all for now! Say hello at thepulse@theathletic.com, and check out our other newsletters.