Winter Paralympics: American Jake Adikov makes history by winning gold as the first gay man to win the tournament

Adikov, of Sun Valley, Idaho, has been skiing since childhood, doing alpine skiing and Nordic snowboarding before alpine skiing was considered too dangerous.

Compete against sighted competitors at the junior level. After being named to the U.S. Paralympic Team in 2013, he went to the 2014 Olympics in Sochi while still a high school student.

His first Paralympic medal came four years later in PyeongChang when he finished second behind Canadian Paralympic legend Brian McIver in the 10km classic event, but he retired after the Games before returning for the 2022 Beijing Games.

Despite high hopes for gold, Adicoff notched two more individual silvers behind McIver before anchoring the US team to claim gold for its first Paralympic title.

But that left Adikov wanting more and with 16-time Paralympic champion McIver retiring, the division was left wide open.

The American took his chance to dominate, winning the World Cup and World Championships before the Games.

Unlike Beijing, where fans did not travel due to the pandemic, athletes at these Games benefited from being able to be watched by friends and family and Adikov’s entourage enjoyed the experience.

Whether they were waving the giant faces of Adikov and his guides Red Goble and Peter Wolter or wearing hats with his name on them, their presence was felt at the Tesero Cross Country Center.

Adikov, who has another chance at a medal in the 20K on Sunday and is scheduled to take part in the 4×2.5K mixed relay on Saturday, may not have been able to see them all during the competition, but he took it all in and joined the post-race celebrations.

“A lot of people have come out and supported us and will continue to support us all week. It’s so nice to have friends and family here,” he said.

“See all those white hats over there? It’s so much fun.”

“I love skiing, and I love ski racing, so finding motivation is easy.”