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Out Gay US Speed Skater Conor McDermott‑Mostowy Qualifies for Milan Olympics in Breakthrough 1000m Win
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Out gay U. S. long track speed skater Conor McDermott‑Mostowy has qualified for his first Olympic Games by winning the men’s 1000‑metre event at the U. S. Olympic Speed Skating Trials for Milano‑Cortina 2026.
The 26‑year‑old skater’s victory in the 1000m final secured him an automatic spot on the United States long track team for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan‑Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy. U. S. Speedskating, the national governing body for the sport, listed McDermott‑Mostowy as the team’s men’s 1000m representative when it formally announced the 2026 long track Olympic roster.
In a post on its official Instagram account, U. S. Speedskating celebrated his qualification with the message “Mission accomplished. Conor is headed to his first Olympic Games, ” underscoring the significance of the result for both the skater and the team.
McDermott‑Mostowy’s win came in a closely watched 1000m race at the trials, where pre‑race favorite and reigning world champion Jordan Stolz stumbled mid‑race and finished third. Stolz had already secured his own Olympic place earlier in the season based on World Cup and championship results, leaving the trials race as a key opening for other U. S. skaters.
For McDermott‑Mostowy, the Milan berth represents a sharp reversal of fortune after he narrowly missed qualification for the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. He fell ill during the final months of the Beijing qualifying period, an episode that left him just short of the team and prompted him to consider stepping away from competitive skating. According to his athlete biography with the International Skating Union, McDermott‑Mostowy later recommitted to the sport, continuing to train at the Utah Olympic Oval and targeting a return at the next Olympic cycle.
Since 2020, McDermott‑Mostowy has been a member of the U. S. national long track team, gaining experience on the World Cup circuit and at world championships. U. S. Speedskating notes that he has been an overall World Cup champion in both team sprint and team pursuit and has represented the United States at three world championships since 2022, building the résumé that underpins his Olympic selection.
The skater has previously spoken about his broader ambitions beyond the ice, including academic interests in biomedical applications of CRISPR technologies, novel HIV treatments, and social justice in medicine and science, as highlighted in profiles from Macalester College and the International Skating Union. His trajectory as both an elite athlete and a scholar has contributed to his visibility as an out gay role model in winter sports.
McDermott‑Mostowy’s qualification adds to a growing list of openly LGBTQ+ athletes expected to compete at the Milano‑Cortina Games, continuing a trend of increasing queer representation at recent Olympics. Attitude Magazine, an LGBTQ+ publication, highlighted his achievement as a milestone both for him personally and for queer visibility in winter sports, noting that he is among several out athletes heading to Milan.
LGBTQ+ sports organizations have already been spotlighting his journey toward Milan. In late 2025, nonprofit group Out Athlete Fund and Pride House LA WeHo promoted an event titled “Skating Toward Milan 2026: A Night with Out Athlete Conor McDermott‑Mostowy, ” aimed at raising funds to support his training and those of other LGBTQ+ Olympic hopefuls. Organizers described the evening as an opportunity for McDermott‑Mostowy to share his story and highlight the positive impact of competing openly and proudly on current and future Olympians.
That community engagement reflects a broader movement within sport to create safer, more affirming environments for LGBTQ+ athletes at all levels of competition. Events like the Pride House LA WeHo gathering aim to ensure that financial barriers and discrimination do not prevent out athletes from reaching global stages such as the Olympics.
McDermott‑Mostowy remains in contention for additional U. S. Olympic slots in the 500m and 1500m events, and he could also be considered for team relay selections depending on final team decisions and quota allocations. Whatever the ultimate composition of his program in Milan, his confirmed place in the 1000m guarantees that an openly gay U. S. long track skater will be on the Olympic ice in 2026, offering representation that many LGBTQ+ fans and younger athletes say they did not see a generation ago.
