Milano Cortina 2026: Sweden’s Ebba Aarsjoe to power up on Italian snow
Swedish Para alpine skier Ebba Aarsjoe will be chasing Paralympic glory again at the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games 09 Feb 2026
Swedish golden girl Ebba Aarsjoe is primed ahead of her next Paralympic chapter after a whirlwind four years since the Para alpine skiing young gun twice graced the top of the podium in Beijing.
Aarsjoe netted double gold in the women's super-combined standing and women's slalom standing and a bronze in women's downhill standing at the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games.
“I feel quite experienced. I’m more relaxed. I know what I’m getting into now,” she told the IPC. “I’m more excited now because I know my family will be there. It will be a nice atmosphere.”
Paralympic Winter Legends: Meet Ebba Aarsjoe, Sweden’s Para Alpine Skiing Star ⭐❄️
A dream come true
Her results in China were a drought-breaking performance – the first time a Swede had won a Para alpine skiing medal since the Salt Lake City 2022 Paralympic Winter Games.
“When I won my medals at the Games, you think about your younger self, everything you have done,” Aarsjoe said. “For me, it felt like I was fulfilling something of a little girl’s dream.”
Born with Klippel–Trenaunay syndrome, Aarsjoe has reduced muscles in her right leg. “I have problems with my blood circulation,” she said.
Para sport has been integral to changing the way she feels about her body.
“In the beginning of my life, the hardest part of this disability was how (my leg) looked. It does look special and maybe a little bit scary,” she said. “It was hard growing up and being a teenager. It took many years to get over that.”
But now she has learned to embrace her leg as part of her Paralympic journey, even though at times the condition brings her immense physical pain.
Last year, she lent her star power to a European Union Commission campaign #inthistogether, raising awareness about youth mental illness and how young people with disabilities can be affected.
Fun and sport
As well as long training sessions and frequently adding new additions to her vast trophy and medal collection, the eight-time World Champion has also let loose with some fun side projects.
She appeared on a long-running Swedish TV show which involved completing challenges and puzzles in prison cells alongside other celebrity contestants. She also spent time getting to know trotting horses for another show.
In 2022, Aarsjoe became the first Paralympian to win the Victoria Prize – a scholarship to mark Swedish Crown Princess Victoria’s birthday.
“It is hard to describe what really happened yesterday. What has happened in the last year that allows me to experience things like this. Here I stand and receive one of the finest sports awards we have in Sweden. At the same time, I get to sit in the company of the royal family. Am grateful and proud a thousand times over,” she wrote on Instagram at the time.
Aarsjoe is determined to make Sweden proud again when she hits the Italian slopes at Milano Cortina 2026.
“Para sport has changed my life... It’s changed me in here,” she said, pointing to her head.
“I see myself differently. I think differently.”
Secure your tickets for the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games
Milano Cortina 2026, which takes place from 6-15 March 2026, is set to be the most beautiful Paralympic Winter Games yet. Ticket prices start at EUR 10 for children under 14, with approximately 89 per cent of the tickets available for EUR 35 or less.
For more information, please visit tickets.milanocortina2026.org
