Photo: IG/@usparaskisnowboard
American Paralympic snowboarder Noah Ellis won his first career ESPY on Wednesday night at the 2025 ESPY Awards, hosted by ESPN. Ellis was awarded “Best Athlete With a Disability” to punctuate a dominant run in which he won two FIS Para snowboard Crystal Globes and two World Championship medals. He had a 100 percent win rate in World Cup banked slalom events and also notched eight World Cup podiums and five wins in snowboard cross and banked slalom in the 2024-2025 season, making him the number one male para snowboarder in the LL1 classification (athletes with significant impairments in one or both legs), according to U.S. Ski and Snowboarding.
Elliot was an up-and-coming skateboarder as a teen. When he was 15, he experienced pain in his leg after a contest, which led to the discovery that he had cancer. His left leg was amputated above the knee as a result. While recovering, Elliot watched the 2014 Sochi Paralympics and soon after was inspired to take up snowboarding. He was named to the U.S. National Team by 2016 and then named to Paralympic Team USA in 2018, where he went on to win a gold medal in banked slalom and bronze in snowboard cross at the 2018 Pyeongchang Paralympic Winter Games.
“I want you to know that I am a survivor and you can be one too, and there can be a life past cancer or disability,” he said as he accepted the award. “Just continue to get out there and put your best foot forward and try to continue to strive to be the best you can be.”
“We are thrilled for Noah’s first ESPY win,” said Sophie Goldschmidt, president and CEO of U.S. Ski and Snowboard. “Noah has achieved a great deal in his sport and is a best-in-class athlete on and off the snow. His dedication to Para snowboarding is incredible to watch and I am so proud to have him recognized on this stage of sport.”
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