Gay skier Jake Adicoff makes history at Winter Paralympic Games
Jake Adicoff swept four gold medals at the Paralympics (Alex Grimm/Getty Images)
American skier Jake Adicoff made history as the first out gay athlete to be crowned an individual winter Paralympic champion, whilst also pulling off a gold medal clean sweep.
The 30-year-old, from Sun Valley in Idaho, competes in the vision-impaired category and prior to the Winter Paralympic Games he vowed to bring four gold medals home across four events – and he did just that.
Adicoff finished first in the sprint visually impaired, 10km classical visually impaired, 20km freestyle visually impaired and 4 x 2.5km mixed relay.
“Four races, four gold medals, that was the goal. It was really hard but it was so rewarding to do it.
“That was my goal since four years ago, it’s been in my mind ever since then,” Adicoff said.
“It’s cool, I’m really proud of the work that I’ve done, the work that this team has done and all the support of my friends and family. I couldn’t be happier right now.”
Speaking to the International Ski and Snowboard Federation, Adicoff said he feels “relieved” the Games panned out the way he hoped they would.
“It’s incredibly scary to put a high goal out to the public.
“I was doubting it so much this week, I didn’t know what was going to happen, but the races came together and I’m just overjoyed,” he explained, adding he is now looking forward to a “good night of sleep, to relaxing and hanging with teammates and friends, just being part of the crew that’s been around me since day one”.
His gold medal haul in Italy adds to his already impressive collection, which includes a gold and two silver medals from the 2022 Games in Beijing, and one silver from Pyeonchang in 2018.
Prior to the start of the Paralympics in Italy, Adicoff told Outsports it was “super important” for him to represent the LGBTQ+ community at the elite level.
“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 said to the outlet.
“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.”
He continued: “Me at age 14 wouldn’t have imagined myself in either of these situations.
“If I can change that mindset for one other 14-year-old growing up who’s having that similar experience, not knowing where sport can take them and not understanding the impact that it can have on your life, then that’s a success.”
