In sports such as baseball or football, beefing up is part of the game.

For ski jumpers, the less they weigh, the more likely they will win, and some try too hard - with grave results.

Canadian ski jumper Stefan Read said he has seen it himself.

"About four years ago there was a German guy who had to be hospitalized a couple times because he was anorexic," he said.

The International Ski Federation introduced a minimum body weight for ski jumpers two years ago, requiring jumpers have a body mass index (BMI) of 18.5, a measurement based on height and weight.

If jumpers weigh any less, they are penalized by being forced to jump with shorter skis.

The rule is a disadvantage intended to reduce or prevent eating disorders amongst the athletes.

"I have to weigh 67 kilograms with all my equipment on in order to have my proper length of skis," said Greg Baxter, another Canadian ski jumper.

That equals about 147 pounds. By international standards, 17-year-old Baxter is healthy, but just. Anything less would be dangerous, and some fear hovering at that weight is risky.

Brent Morrice, the chairman of Ski Jumping Canada, is also the parent of a ski jumper.

"It's tough being a parent and watching the way these kids eat," he said. "Because they can't eat a whole lot. I'd love to see the BMI up a kilo or two. I think it's the right thing to do."

But that sentiment is not widely shared by the European jumpers who are often thinner. Some also insist they are thinner naturally.

Austrian ski jumper Nikolas Fettner says he finds it more difficult in North America to eat the way he wants to.

"For me it's more difficult here in Canada, or America," he said. "Because of the food."

Whether or not the North American diet is to blame, the weight of Canadian ski jumpers is currently a competitive disadvantage.

"Just imagine jumping off one of these jumps carrying a ten pound sack," Morrice said. "That's what some of our Canadians are doing, competing against the Europeans."

The increasing pressure to be thin to win continues.

With a report from CTV British Columbia's Sarah Galashan