Jutta Leerdam, the Dutch speed skater and fiance of internet star and boxer Jake Paul, will not face any punishment after revealing her bra following her gold medal win at the Winter Olympics in Milano-Cortina last week.

Leerdam took gold in the 1000m speed skating event on Sunday and was seen by cameras unzipping part of her tight speed suit, revealing a white Nike sports bra. The moment quickly went viral after being shared on Nike’s Instagram account. She also won a silver medal in 500m event.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has strict rules about advertising during the Games, which led to speculation that Leerdam might face sanctions. However, IOC Television & Marketing Services Managing Director Anne-Sophie Voumard clarified the situation.

Why Leerdam will escape punishment

Voumard explained that unzipping the suit after a race is “normal practice” in speed skating because the uniforms are very tight. She added, “It is normal practice and not a case of ambush marketing.”

“I’m not an expert in speed skating. But I understand this (unzipping the uniform after a race) is normal practice for speed skaters when they finish their race because the suit is very tight. It is normal practice and not a case of ambush (marketing),” she said.

Leerdam, who has 6.4 million Instagram followers, is also known for sharing behind-the-scenes glimpses of her life, including private jet trips with Paul and a new Hermes Birkin bag she bought after her Olympic victory.

The IOC has welcomed such content as it helps bring a new dimension to the Games. Kaveh Mehrabi, IOC Director of the Athletes’ Department, said, “Athletes have generated over 1.3 billion social engagements, about half a million per athlete, and we are proud they want to show their own experience.”

Jutta Leerdam alone has generated over 100 million engagements. The most appealing content has been behind the scenes. We changed the guidelines since Paris (2024 Olympic Games), allowing athletes to show their experience first hand.”

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Dutch speed skater Jutta Leerdam has been among the standout performers so far in the Winter Olympics currently taking place in Italy’s Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo. The 27-year-old, after all, had won women’s 1,000m gold on Monday while smashing the Olympic record with a timing of 1:12:31, with Femke Kok winning silver to complete a Dutch one-two in the event.

And on Sunday, Leerdam – who was visibly emotional after her victory earlier this week – added another medal to her collection by winning silver in the women’s 500m sprint, with Kok smashing the Olympic record in this event for a change.

Despite her Olympic heroics, Leerdam finds herself in the spotlight for the wrong reasons in recent weeks.

From fall-out with speed-skating legend to arriving in Italy in a private jet

One reason could be the speed skating star’s boyfriend, American YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul, who has publicly endorsed controversial US president Donald Trump and vice-president JD Vance. Leerdam had also made headlines after arriving in Italy in a private jet along with Paul instead of accompanying the Dutch contingent on a commercial flight, leading to Dutch sports pundits labeling her a “terrible diva”.

And it’s not just in the ongoing Milano-Cortina Games where Leerdam has been facing the heat from experts as well as the general public for her behaviour. She had, after all, a fallout with Dutch speed-skating icon Sven Kramer two years ago.

Kramer, a four-time Olympic champion who was the team manager at the time, had disagreed with Leerdam pushing for customised training routines and commercial freedom, insisting that “no one is bigger than the team”.

At the same time, there are those who believe Leerdam’s athletic success combined with a massive social media following (she has 6.1 million followers on Instagram) will only be beneficial for speed skating and for winter sports in general.

Leerdam has already silenced many of her detractors with her record-breaking victory earlier this week and her 500m silver on Sunday will have further pushed criticism surrounding her personal life and her commercial interests to the backseat. And if she continues to produce such performances on the ice, such discussions will eventually fade into irrelevance.

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