| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 4, 1998 Rochester, New York, U.S. |
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) |
| Weight | 135 lb (61 kg) |
| Sport | |
| Country |  United States |
| Sport | Freestyle skiing |
Event | Aerials |
Medal record | |
Christopher B. Lillis (born October 4, 1998) is an American freestyle skier. At the 2022 Winter Olympics, he won a gold medal in the mixed team aerials event.
Lillis was born on October 4, 1998, in Rochester, New York, United States. [1] His hometown is the suburb of Pittsford, New York. [2] According to his member profile with U.S. Ski & Snowboard, Chris Lillis began skiing at Bristol Mountain when he was three years old, and joined the Bristol Mountain Freestyle Team at six years old. He is 5 ft 9 in tall and weighs 135 lb. [3] [4] His older brother Jonathon Lillis competed at the 2018 Winter Olympics; [5] the pair's brother, Michael, also a freestyle skier, died in 2017. [6]
He is the youngest man ever to win an FIS Aerials World Cup, at 17 years old. He came in first at the 2016 cup in Minsk, Belarus. He also came in first at Almaty, Kazakhstan, in 2020. [7] He competed in aerial skiing at the FIS Freestyle Ski World Championships 2021 in Almaty, winning the silver medal in men's aerials. [8]
Lillis competed in the men's aerials and mixed team aerials events at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, winning sixth place in the men's aerials event and a gold medal, alongside Ashley Caldwell and Justin Schoenefeld, in mixed team aerials. [1] As a competitor in the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, Lillis received a mix of reactions, including social media backlash, [9] for remarks he made tied to his "mixed emotions" about representing Team USA during the political climate of the United States, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity. [10] [11] [12]
Lillis attended Monroe Community College and the University of Utah. [6] [7] He is also a guitarist and pianist on the side, both in New York and in Park City, Utah. [7] [13] [14]
Lillis received significant backlash during the 2026 Winter Olympics and remarks he made tied to "mixed emotions" about representing Team USA. [15]
