Heading into the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympics, skiers and snowboarders were already adjusting to a ban on fluorinated waxes long prized for making their equipment faster. This week, the Winter Games saw their first enforcement of that rule, which is aimed at protecting public health and the environment.
South Korean cross-country skiers Han Dasom and Lee Eui-jin were disqualified from the women’s sprint event on Tuesday. That came one day after Japanese snowboarder Shiba Masaki was disqualified from the men’s parallel giant slalom. In all three cases, routine testing found banned compounds on their equipment.
For decades, elite snow sports athletes have relied on waxes with fluorocarbons that are exceptional at repelling water and dirt. Former U.S. cross-country racer Nathan Schultz told Grist the so-called “fluoro” waxes provide a “really ridiculous speed advantage,” especially in warmer conditions like those experienced at these Games.
But these waxes also contained PFAS, short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl sub... Read more
