Fans think they've discovered the message behind viral Olympic pole vaulter's tattoo - after Anthony Ammirati was eliminated due to his bulging manhood

Eagle-eyed viewers believe they've finally uncovered the symbolism behind Anthony Ammirati's tattoo after he went viral for his hilarious failed pole vaulting attempt. 

The Frenchman was knocked out of the pole vault semi-finals on Saturday after his knee - and protruding manhood - appeared to snag on the 5.70-metre bar. 

His unfortunate moment went viral on social media and after finishing 12th in his semi-final with a best of 5.60m he labelled it a 'big disappointment'.

Now fans have honed in on the slithering snake tattoo wrapping around his right arm and they think it tells us everything we need to know. 

'Anthony Ammirati will never have to explain the forearm tattoo again. Message received and understood,' one fan wrote on X, formerly Twitter. 

'Never forget: This is the moment when the tattoo made sense,' another tweet said. 

Ammirati has had the tattoo for at least a couple of years, with one Instagram post in April 2022 flaunting the inked addition. 

He is not the first Olympian to catch his underworld material on the bar - the same fate befell Japanese pole vaulter Hiroki Ogita during the qualifying rounds at Rio 2016. 

Neither of Ammirati's fellow Frenchmen Robin Emig and Thibault Collet qualified for the final, though they did not encounter the same hitch. Monday's final was won by Swede Armand Duplantis. 

It’s a big disappointment,' Ammirati told the French Athletics Federation. 'I’m a bit gutted, because I didn’t miss anything on the third attempt at 5.70m. What I did miss was a bit of jumping in training to fine-tune the settings. Just a technical session.'

He then added: 'I was 100 percent physically, but I was missing a bit of pole vault.

'The conditions were good. It’s the first time I’ve started a competition without any stress.

'As I was a total outsider, I only had one goal: to interact with the audience. I was almost there.'

Ammirati's remarkable gaffe quickly went viral on social media, with fans left in stitches after his private parts cost him a place on the podium.

'Anthony Ammirati failed the bar and the commentators are already having a hard time acknowledging what happened. Help I'm dying,' a user on X posted.

'Unlucky but also good flex' another pointed out.

'The best way to lose... man ego still there,' someone else said.