When Swedish skier Elis Lundholm first hits the slopes at the 2026 Winter Olympics next week, he will be making history.
Lundholm is the first openly transgender athlete in the history of the winter games, a selection that has drawn plenty of attention. While there had been some controversy at the 2024 Summer Olympics over allegations that a pair of women boxers were transgender, Lundholm has largely avoided controversy due to his decision on where to compete.
Elis Lundholm Makes History As First Transgender Athlete in Winter Games
The 24-year-old Lundholm was named to the Swedish skiing team just a few weeks ago and is set to compete in moguls and dual moguls. As Outsports noted, Lundholm avoided controversy by competing in the women’s category, his sex assigned at birth.
“Lundholm is a trans man who competes for Sweden in moguls, a freestyle skiing discipline that involves a steep hill and a ton of bumps along the way,” the report noted. “Because he was born female and competes in the female category, he is good to compete per the trans athlete rules in any sport.”
The report added that Lundholm has been building his stature in the skiing world, leading up to his first appearance in the Winter Olympics next week.
“He grew up in Varmdo, a municipality just outside of the country’s capital of Stockholm. The 23-year-old has had three top-25 finishes in moguls at World Cup events the last couple seasons. He’s finished third at Sweden’s National Championships the last two seasons,” the report noted.
Lundholm said he’s ready to compete and not too worried about what critics might say online.
“Of course it’s something I thought about,” Lundholm told Swedish news outlet Aftonbladet. “You can hear the voices out there. But then I do my thing, and I don’t give a damn.”
Controversy at Summer Olympics
While Lundholm’s selection has been largely without controversy, the last round of the Summer Olympics had plenty. A pair of women’s boxers — Algeria’s Imane Khelif and Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting — were accused of improperly competing in the women’s boxing tournament.
IOC spokesperson Mark Adams confirmed that both Khelif and Taiwan’s Yu-Ting were born as women and were in compliance with the gender classification
“I would just say that everyone competing in the women’s category is complying with the competition eligibility rules. They are women in their passports,” Adams said, via Yahoo Sports.
“These athletes competed many times before for many years,” Adams added. “They didn’t just suddenly arrive.”
The Olympic committee of Algeria also called out Khelif’s critics, releasing a statement targeting “the unethical targeting and maligning” by media outlets that falsely claimed Khelif is transgender.
“Such attacks on her personality and dignity are deeply unfair, especially as she prepares for the pinnacle of her career at the Olympics,” the statement read, via Yahoo Sports.
But Khelif drew plenty of pushback, including some prominent critics who falsely accused her of being transgender. Blocking out the criticism, Khelif went on to win the gold medal.
Swedish Skiier Elis Lundholm Set to Make History at 2026 Winter Olympics