Meet Breezy Johnson, the LGBTQ athlete who won the US’ first gold at the Winter Olympics
The ski racer, who came out as bisexual in 2022, has made a stellar comeback following injury and a drug-testing-related suspension
Here’s what to know about Breezy Johnson.
Her growing-up years
Breezy Johnson was born Breanna Noble Johnson, in January 1996, to Heather Noble and Greg Johnson, in Jackson, Wyoming. “Breezy” was her grandmother’s nickname for her and became her legal name before she graduated from Rowmark Ski Academy in Salt Lake City, Utah, per the Seattle Times. Breezy Johnson’s father – a former alpine racer who worked in construction – met her mother, a lawyer, while skiing in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, per Hello! magazine. The couple reportedly raised Johnson and her older brother Finn near Victor, Idaho. She later attended Western Washington University.
Her ski racing journey
Johnson learned to ski from her father from the age of three, per Forbes, with brother Finn her earliest competitor. She made her Olympic debut at Pyeongchang 2018, after which she sustained several injuries that stalled her career. She was also suspended for 14 months, until December 2024, for violating the US Anti-Doping Agency’s whereabouts policy by missing three random drug tests. Despite the setbacks, Johnson delivered a clutch performance in Milano Cortina, dedicating her gold medal to her father, who was recently in an accident and has to hang up his skis, per NBC News.