Finland debuted the first transgender figure skater at the European Figure Skating Championships — but it didn't go very well..Figure skater and transgender female Minna-Maaria Antikainen, 59, skated in the opening ceremony, where many female skaters hold their country flags.. Finnish skaterFinnish skater .Antikainen stumbles several times before falling and cannot stand back up until the Finnish skater with the Finland flag comes over and helps Antikainen stand up, giving Antikainen the flag to help her balance on the ice.."The opening ceremony will present skaters at various levels, from non-professionals to top athletes. On the ice, we will see single skaters, synchronized skaters, and pairs. Included among the performers are figure skater Minna-Maaria Antikainen, who defines herself as a gender-neutral woman, adaptive skating performers, and a male synchronized skating team," said coach Helena Tienhaara..“With the diverse group of performers, we want to show that the ice has space for everyone," said choreographer and coach Beata Leppilampi..Antikainen's performance had “mixed reviews” from fans and critics..International Skating Union (ISU) European Figure Skating Championship (EFSC) based the opening ceremony on the theme “just be you.”.The Finnish Figure Skating Association's (FFSA) response to Antikainen’s performance was that “Finnish Figure Skating Association promotes the importance of equality and diversity and develops skating according to its values.”.Antikainen is a biological male who transitioned to female and uses male and female pronouns. Antikainen identifies as a “gender-neutral woman.”.Before becoming a figure skater, Antikainen was a farmer but had a “childhood dream” to be a professional figure skater. .FFSA Executive Director and ISU EFSC Secretary General Outi Wuorenheimo praised the diverse opening ceremony.."Figure skating is a very conservative sport with various strict rules. In international competitions, same-sex skating pairs are not allowed, and there is no category for non-binary skaters. I hope that every country will start working for equality and diversity in the field,” said Wuorenheimo.."We want to change the figure skating world by showing that talking about a skater’s weight is not the top priority, but muscular, healthy athletes may also succeed at the top level. It is important that we have different-looking skaters of various sizes in the competitions.”
Finland debuted the first transgender figure skater at the European Figure Skating Championships — but it didn't go very well..Figure skater and transgender female Minna-Maaria Antikainen, 59, skated in the opening ceremony, where many female skaters hold their country flags.. Finnish skaterFinnish skater .Antikainen stumbles several times before falling and cannot stand back up until the Finnish skater with the Finland flag comes over and helps Antikainen stand up, giving Antikainen the flag to help her balance on the ice.."The opening ceremony will present skaters at various levels, from non-professionals to top athletes. On the ice, we will see single skaters, synchronized skaters, and pairs. Included among the performers are figure skater Minna-Maaria Antikainen, who defines herself as a gender-neutral woman, adaptive skating performers, and a male synchronized skating team," said coach Helena Tienhaara..“With the diverse group of performers, we want to show that the ice has space for everyone," said choreographer and coach Beata Leppilampi..Antikainen's performance had “mixed reviews” from fans and critics..International Skating Union (ISU) European Figure Skating Championship (EFSC) based the opening ceremony on the theme “just be you.”.The Finnish Figure Skating Association's (FFSA) response to Antikainen’s performance was that “Finnish Figure Skating Association promotes the importance of equality and diversity and develops skating according to its values.”.Antikainen is a biological male who transitioned to female and uses male and female pronouns. Antikainen identifies as a “gender-neutral woman.”.Before becoming a figure skater, Antikainen was a farmer but had a “childhood dream” to be a professional figure skater. .FFSA Executive Director and ISU EFSC Secretary General Outi Wuorenheimo praised the diverse opening ceremony.."Figure skating is a very conservative sport with various strict rules. In international competitions, same-sex skating pairs are not allowed, and there is no category for non-binary skaters. I hope that every country will start working for equality and diversity in the field,” said Wuorenheimo.."We want to change the figure skating world by showing that talking about a skater’s weight is not the top priority, but muscular, healthy athletes may also succeed at the top level. It is important that we have different-looking skaters of various sizes in the competitions.”
