A specific rule means that athletes competing at the Paralympics who have a five rings tattoo on show could find themselves in hot water

Athletes at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games could find themselves barred from competing for a very specific reason.

Imagine, you’re lined up about to compete in the swimming, but just as the little honk is about to go off to signal the start someone gestures you to get off the block.

Referees draw attention to a tattoo you have, not an offensive or inflammatory one, but of the Olympic rings, and because of this you are disqualified.

You have fallen foul of a little known Olympic rule which sets out rigid regulations for athletes. Tough break!

But why is this rule actually in place?

British athlete Josef Craig previously fell foul of the rule. (Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

It’s all to do with sponsorships and advertising.

Competing in the Olympics and Paralympics may not bring any financial gain, aside from rewards offered to medallists by their home country.

But that doesn’t mean that athletes can’t make a living, as many often have a big public profiles and thousands of social media followers.

Naturally, that means advertisers will emerge to offer them promotional deals in exchange for their endorsement.

However, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has firm rules on body advertising, and this extends to having the Olympic rings tattooed on your body.

Outside the games it’s not their concern, but not during the competition.

British athlete Josef Craig fell foul of this rule when he posed with a tattoo consisting of the British Lion and the Olympic rings at the 2016 IPC European Championships in Madeira.

As his body art was exposed, the then-19-year-old was disqualified.

The IPC later defended the decision and issued a statement.

It said: “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 compete in the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games where he took home the bronze for in the 100m S8 freestyle. He had covered up the Olympic rings tattoo with the Union Jack.

However, in a different case Australian swimmer Kyle Chalmers was permitted to swim with a tattoo that had the five rings.

This was because the International Olympic Committee has different rules from the International Paralympic Committee.

So, while Olympic athletes are generally allowed to have the rings on show, it’s a different story for those competing in the Paralympics.

The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games start on August 28 and end on September 8.