Swedish skier becomes first transgender Winter Olympian
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Elis Lundholm, competing in moguls for Team Sweden on Tuesday. Photo: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
Swedish skier Elis Lundholm became the first openly transgender athlete to compete at the Winter Olympics on Tuesday, after completing the first qualification run in women's moguls.
Why it matters: While the Olympics and many international sporting federations have taken steps that limit participation by transgender athletes, some athletes have been able to compete in the category corresponding to their assigned gender at birth.
- Lundholm, who was assigned female at birth, is allowed to compete in the women's category but identifies as male.
- Lundholm finished in 29th place out of the 30-person field during Tuesday's first qualification run, with only the top 10 automatically reaching the finals. That means Lundholm will need a significantly higher finish on Wednesday to advance to the finals.
The big picture: The participation of transgender athletes in sport has been a major topic around the globe, with most of the focus on whether transgender girls and women's should be able to compete in the female category, and under what conditions.
- Last year, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee officially banned transgender women from competing in women's sports, following an executive order from President Trump
- A number of states have banned transgender girls from competing in youth sports. The Trump administration has pressured states, such as California and Minnesota, that allow transgender youth to compete in the gender with which they identify.
- Battles over gender though, are not new and have been around since the creation of a separate category for female athletes.
Between the lines: While much of the focus has been on transgender women, a number of transgender men and nonbinary athletes who were assigned female at birth have competed at the international level as well.
- Nonbinary soccer player Quinn has competed at several Olympics as part of the Canadian women's team.
- In the Paris games, Nikki Hiltz, who identifies as transgender and nonbinary, became the first trans athlete to reach an individual final.
Yes, but: No transgender women have competed in the Olympics since 2021, when New Zealand weightlifter Laurel Hubbard became the first to do so, while Team USA BMX rider Chelsea Wolfe went to Tokyo an alternate.
- Shortly after Tokyo, the International Olympic Committee updated its guidelines, allowing each international federation to set its own rules on trans athletes.
- Some, including the governing bodies of swimming and track and field, passed rules that make it nearly impossible for transgender women to compete — and there were no known transgender women who competed in Paris.
Go deeper: Gender tensions at the Olympics are not new
