NFC chips are to be added to competition-level ski jump suits to monitor whether competitors are adhering to regulations.

The sport’s governing body, FIS, is restricting the number of suits competitors can use during the World Cup and other major world-class events from next winter, so gluing NFC chips to the individual parts of each suit will enable precise measurements to be taken quickly during competitions. The ruling follows initial tests during the summer.

Under the new rules, athletes will have to use one suit per competition, with up to 10 used over a season if they take part in all of the championships. The goal is to create a level playing field in the sport, which saw athletes from smaller nations restricted to fewer suits due to limited budgets. Prior to the FIS ruling, competitors could switch between as many suits as they wanted during the competition season.

“It has long been a very important concern for the teams and for us that we manage to reduce the number of suits. It’s about equality of opportunity and, of course, also about reducing costs and sustainability,” FIS race director Sandro Pertile says.

“This is now possible with the use of chips, which we are very pleased about. Of course, we still need to gain experience with the new technology in competition mode, but that is part of the process.”

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