Elis Lundholm, a Swedish skier who identifies as a transgender man, will participate in the women's category at the upcoming Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics. Lundholm, who began identifying as transgender five years ago, has stated she has no issue competing against women. This case highlights ongoing debates about gender categories in sports.
Elis Lundholm will represent Sweden in the moguls skiing event at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, competing in the women's category despite identifying as a transgender man. Lundholm, biologically female, uses he/him pronouns and has not undergone medical transition. In an interview with Swedish outlet Sportbladet, Lundholm said, “has never had a problem competing as a woman.”
The athlete's selection has sparked discussions on social media about transgender participation in sports. British professor Jon Pike commented on X, “Lundholm is female, identifies as trans, uses he/him pronouns and has not gone through medical transition, competes in the female category.” He added, “Lundholm is a walking/skiing refutation of the claim that it’s unreasonable to require TiM [Transgender identifying Male] athletes to compete in their sex category... Lundholm competes in the correct sex category, even though this is not the category into which Lundholm identifies, and has ‘no problem with this.’” Many online users agreed that fairness concerns would only arise if testosterone were involved, which is not the case here.
Lundholm's participation is described by some LGBT advocates and media as the first openly transgender athlete at the Winter Olympics, marking a “major milestone in trans sports.” Current rules base categories on biological sex, allowing Lundholm to remain in the women's event.
This comes amid broader controversies in Olympic sports. Last summer, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee updated its policy to align with an executive order, stating it would “ensure that women have a fair and safe competition environment.” Past examples include Imane Khelif, an Algerian boxer who failed gender tests but won gold in the women's welterweight at the 2024 Paris Summer Games, drawing global outrage. In 2021 Tokyo Olympics, Laurel Hubbard competed as a trans-identifying man in women's weightlifting for New Zealand, while Chelsea Wolfe served as a reserve in women's BMX freestyle for the U.S.
