The out gay Olympic freeskiing medalist Gus Kenworthy, is making a thrilling comeback, announcing he’s ending his retirement to compete at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.
The 33-year-old shared with ESPN that he’s already back in training, driven by a renewed passion for the sport.
“After taking a step away, I realized I miss skiing, and I really want to compete again,” Kenworthy explained. “I didn’t know if I would be able to come back after three-and-a-half years, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to after seven and a half. So, it’s this Olympics or nothing. I’m never going to have this opportunity again.”
His previous retirement followed a challenging period that included two major concussions and a bout with COVID-19, leading to extensive recovery time and what Kenworthy described as an “identity crisis.” However, he feels that now is the perfect moment for his return. “I don’t feel like I’m going back into it because I don’t know who I am otherwise,” he stated. “I’m going back into it because I can still do it, and because I want to.”
Kenworthy, who was born in the UK and moved to Colorado at age two, will once again be representing Great Britain in 2026. This follows his representation of Team USA, where he famously won a Slopestyle silver medal in 2014.
He publicly came out as gay the following year, becoming one of the first openly gay athletes to achieve mainstream recognition in action sports. He continued to break ground as one of two openly gay men representing the USA at the PyeongChang Olympics in 2018.
His initial retirement came after a crash during the men’s final at the 2022 Beijing Olympics. At the time, Kenworthy told Olympics.com, “The final hurrah. My swan song. I’m done. I’m done competing. I’ve had a career that I’m really, really proud of.” He also acknowledged an “expiration date” for his competitive career. Now, it seems that date has been gloriously extended.
