Gay cross-country skier makes Paralympics history with gold-medal wins

Just a few days out from the closing ceremony of the 2026 games, Team USA cross-country skier Jake Adicoff has become the first out gay man to win an individual Winter Paralympics gold medal.

On Tuesday, Adicoff, who is visually impaired, earned the history-making top spot in the men's 1.5km sprint by a margin of 1.5 seconds, nudging out China’s Shuang Yu, who took home silver, alongside guide Peter Wolter. And on Wednesday, he earned gold in the men’s 10km interval start, with a 1 minute and 48 seconds lead over his closest competition, Inkki Inola of Finland. As he crossed the finish line, securing his second gold medal in 24 hours, and the fourth medal of his Paralympics career, Adicoff took a dramatic, well-deserved bow with guide Reid Goble following closely behind.

Adicoff’s stated goal for the 2026 Milano Cortina Paralympic Games, which runs March 6 to March 15, was to take home four gold medals in total. And after back-to-back days of climbing to the pinnacle of the winners’ podium, the four-time Paralympian is well on his way.

Next up, Adicoff will attempt to win gold in Saturday’s 4 X 2.5km mixed relay — which he won the top prize for in Beijing — and the 20km men’s freestyle on Sunday.

Ahead of the games, Adicoff, who is one of only six LGBTQ+ athletes at the 2026 Winter Paralympics, told OutSports, “We, as para athletes, have a very important role to showcase ability, to showcase that there is this high level of sport that you can achieve. I think that same thing is really necessary for queers in sports.”

He added, “There are high levels of attrition. The higher you get in sport, the less out people that you see, and I think going to the Paralympics, being a gay athlete there, showing that it’s possible to reach this upper echelon of sport as an out athlete and as a para athlete, that’s super important to me.”