Four Events. Four Golds. Jake Adicoff’s Clean Sweep.
U.S. Para Nordic skier Jake Adicoff has had the same thing written on his goal sheet every year since Beijing: four golds at the 2026 Paralympic Games.
Not "podium." Not "medal." Four golds. Every event. A golden sweep.
I sat down with Jake and his guide Peter Wolter the week after their historic performance in Tesero — the day before I had interviewed Reid Goble, the third member of Adicoff's golden trio. And if the two conversations had anything in common, it was this: these three are really, genuinely good friends. And that, it turns out, is part of the strategy.
The Assignment
Jake didn't go to Milano Cortina alone. His guides, Peter Wolter and Reid Goble, are two of his closest friends. It’s a dynamic that’s less support system and more co-conspiracy.
"The assignment the whole time was keep it fun, keep it easy, keep it light. We had maybe 20 minutes…combined…of serious conversation over the full two weeks." joked Peter.
That wasn't an accident. Jake knew what he needed to do, and Peter and Reid were ready to help make it happen.
"They felt a lot of the pressure that I was feeling. And they made sure it didn't swallow any of us.” noted Jake. "Every day was a bit of a battle…just fighting nerves and trying to stay calm. It ended up working out, but it wasn't easy."
The Pain Cave
Ask Jake about pushing through the hard moments in a race, and his answer is refreshingly unromantic:
"It's not something I think about too much outside of the actual racing. I'm just looking for motivation wherever I can find it and push as hard as I can.”
Peter certainly knows the feeling. As an individual competitor himself, guiding is its own beast.
"You're not just racing for yourself, it's very much a team effort. Pushing over the tops of hills becomes a little more interesting because I'm going at Jake's pace…but sometimes I want Jake to go my pace. Pushing through the pain cave is much more fun when we're together."
All that time training together, racing together, and grinding through intervals paid off big time in Tesero. Cue the Star Spangled Banner
From Sun Valley to the Podium
Peter and Jake go way back. They grew up skiing on the same club team in Sun Valley, Idaho but were separated by a few years in age so didn't overlap much as kids. But about five years ago, when they landed on the same professional team, things clicked. They spent the last quad figuring out how to get Jake to the top of every podium in Cortina.
For Peter, that kind of bond is what the sport has always been about.
"The people I've met in cross country skiing are my absolute favorite. I could have been atrocious at cross country skiing and they'd still be awesome people and friends. It's about making the connections no matter the outcome of what you're actually pursuing."
Jake arrived at the same place differently. He stepped away from professional skiing for a stretch — worked a regular job, saw what life looked like without it — and came back knowing exactly what he'd been missing.
"I now know what kind of joy and passion is out there. Skiing sets a bar for things that I love to do,” reflects Jake.
Four golds at the 2026 Paralympic Winter Games. The same four he'd been writing down every year since Beijing. For Jake Adicoff and guides Peter Wolter and Reid Goble, their Milano Cortina mission is complete.
ABOUT THIS SERIES
I'm Amy Wotovich, and I am on a mission to interview 100% of Team USA's 2026 Olympic and Paralympic athletes to create the most comprehensive mindset record of a single Games cycle. What do elite competitors actually believe about pressure, identity, failure, and joy? Jake Adicoff and Peter Wolter are part of hundreds of athletes sharing their unfiltered answers. Follow the journey!
