Kyle Taulman

Quick Facts

• Specialty: Para Alpine Skiing (Sitting) — LW11 Classification
• At age two, a high-risk neuroblastoma wrapped around his spinal cord, leaving him permanently paralyzed
• His family relocated from Freeport, Illinois, where he was born to Steamboat Springs, Colorado
• His mother, Julie, is highly involved in adaptive sports, working with the National Sports Center for the Disabled
• Hobbies include scuba diving and singing

Biographical Information

At two years old, Kyle Taulman was diagnosed with high-risk neuroblastoma, a type of cancer arising in nerve tissue. He underwent a successful tumor resection surgery, but was left permanently paralyzed. The prognosis reshaped everything, including the way his family approached his childhood. His mother introduced him to skiing by placing him in a padded bucket seat mounted on a bi-ski frame, and the mountain became as familiar as anywhere else. In January 2007, when Kyle was five years old, Horizons Adaptive Ski Program gave him and another local child with a disability specialized sit-skis that cost about $10,000 each, made possible by an anonymous donor along with Horizons funds.

Growing up in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, Taulman became immersed in one of the most ski-centric communities in the country, home to the Steamboat Ski & Resort and a deep culture of winter sport. However, skiing wasn’t his first focus. He swam with his local swim team and took it seriously enough that he once aspired to compete as a Para swimmer.  He also took up wheelchair tennis, competing at the 2021 Collegiate Wheelchair Tennis Championships. Skiing was always present alongside those pursuits, and his commitment to it deepened over time as his results on the mountain began to signal what was possible. By age 14, he got more serious about Para alpine skiing and started racing competitively.

Taulman made his Paralympic debut at the Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, competing in slalom in the LW11 sitting division, the classification for athletes with partial trunk control and fair sitting balance but no hip function. The same year following the COVID-19 postponement, he competed at the 2021 World Para Snow Sports Championships in Lillehammer, Norway, entering both giant slalom and slalom in the sitting men's division. Competing at both a Paralympic Games and a world championships in the same season spoke to the pace of his development and the level of investment he had made in the sport.

When not skiing or studying, Kyle enjoys scuba diving and singing, pursuing his passion as a musician. He is also passionate about advocating for the disabled community and increasing accessibility to specialized sports equipment.

Paralympic Experience

• 2-time Paralympian
• Paralympic Games Milan 2026, (Slalom - Sitting - Men)
• Paralympic Games Beijing 2022, (Slalom - Sitting - Men)

World Championships Experience

• Most recent: 2022 – (Giant Slalom - Sitting - Men, Slalom - Sitting - Men)
• Years of participation: Giant Slalom - Sitting - Men 2022; Slalom - Sitting - Men 2022
• Top finish: – 2022 (Giant Slalom - Sitting - Men), 2022 (Slalom - Sitting - Men)