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Misgendering Incident Involving A Trans Olympian Triggers Heated Debate After NBC Deletes Footage
NBC has deleted the feed of the 2026 women’s moguls freestyle skiing qualifiers, which took place on Tuesday, February 10, after commentators repeatedly misgendered an athlete during the live stream.
Swedish skier Elis Lundholm, who was born female but identifies as male, was referred to as “she” by one commentator, while another used “they” instead of “he.”
Highlights
- NBC deleted the live stream of the 2026 women’s moguls qualifiers after commentators misgendered Swedish skier Elis Lundholm.
- Social media reactions have remained divided, with some praising NBC’s apology and others defending the commentators.
- The controversy comes as the President of the International Olympic Committee has signaled a possible ban on transgender women competing in women’s events.
The network’s decision to remove the footage and issue an apology has caused social media users to share mixed reactions.
“It’s not hard to call someone what they prefer,” one person wrote, while another defended the commentators, saying, “But he was competing in a women’s sport. I’d get confused too.”
RELATED:
Misgendering of a trans athlete at the Winter Olympics landed NBC in hot water
Image credits: Emmanuele Ciancaglini/Getty Images
23-year-old Lundholm is the only openly transgender athlete competing at the ongoing Winter Olympics.
He is also the first trans athlete to ever compete in the Winter Olympics.
The International Ski and Snowboard Federation allowed Lundholm to compete in the women’s division because he has not started masculinizing hormone replacement therapy yet.
Image credits: IOC/Getty Images)
Similar regulations allowed Filipino boxer Hergie Bacyadan to compete in the women’s event in Paris in 2024.
Lundholm started his run and navigated his first jump cleanly on Tuesday before going off course and facing early disappointment.
Image credits: beckytaylorgill
The upset was chronicled by one of the live stream commentators, who said, “Getting off course here though… oh, she just skids out of that gate.”
“She’s going to hop up and go around to make sure she does not DNF as she continues down the line here,” the commentator continued.
Image credits: TaraBull
Image credits: elis_lundholm
In its apology for streaming the misgendered commentary, NBC said: “NBC Sports takes this matter seriously.”
“We apologize to Elis and our viewers, and we have removed the replay of that feed,” the network added.
A heated debate has ensued online about Lundholm’s misgendering and NBC’s apology over the same
Image credits: David Ramos/Getty Images
“That apology was respectful,” a netizen said in support of NBC’s acknowledgement of the commentators’ slip-up, while another added, “It’s really that simple. An apology goes a long way.”
“Treating people with respect doesn’t cost a thing,” a third person wrote, while a fourth added, “Beautiful and respectful. Well done.”
Image credits: val9496
Image credits: TheProjectUnity
“Never apologize for speaking the truth,” an NBC detractor, meanwhile, advised.
“Skier is confused, so why wouldn’t the network be?” asked another.
A third NBC critic added, “They had nothing to apologize for. All they did was speak the truth about this lady skier.”
Image credits: elis_lundholm
“Too bad we are hearing nothing about the skier. Did the skier do well in the Olympics? Fall on the run?” asked the next.
Lundholm finished 25th in the qualifiers and did not advance to the moguls’ final round.
The misgendering debate comes as the International Olympic Committee reviews its policy on transgender inclusion
Image credits: David Ramos/Getty Images
IOC President Kirsty Coventry, who took charge of the organization last year, according to Associated Press and Daily Mail Sport, has indicated that she may move to ban transgender women from competing in women’s events.
She also suggested the IOC could reinstate genetic testing, which it abandoned in 1999 after it was deemed scientifically flawed and ineffective at identifying male impostors, at future Olympic Games.
Image credits: HappyCorgiDude
Image credits: Jay_BZ27
Genetic testing involves checking whether an athlete has XX (female) or XY (male) chromosomes to decide if they can compete in the female category.
In some rare cases, though, women can host XY chromosomes.
Image credits: elis_lundholm
President Donald Trump also said in August 2025, during a White House event, that he would push for genetic testing at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics to bar transgender athletes from competing in the women’s division.
Image credits: Hannah Peters/Getty Images
That same month, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services also announced that it had updated its immigration policy to restrict visa eligibility for transgender women looking to compete in women’s sports.
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Under the updated policy, USCIS will consider “the fact that a male athlete has been competing against women” as a negative factor when evaluating visa petitions for the next Olympics.
“USCIS is closing the loophole for foreign male athletes whose only chance at winning elite sports is to change their gender identity,” Matthew Tragesser, a spokesperson for the department, said.
“A transgender person was treated respectfully and the planet continued to rotate,” a netizen expressed about the incident
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