Ellen's Story
Fast Facts
Sport: Cross-Country Skiing
Olympic History: Milano Cortina 2026
Highlights: Representing Australia at Milano Cortina 2026
Year Born: 1994
About Ellen
Ellen Søhol Lie will make her Olympic debut at Milano Cortina 2026. Born in Sydney, and raised in Norway, she has helped push Australian cross‑country skiing into new territory.
Ellen first skied as a child in Norway, paused the sport as a teenager, and remarkably returned at 24 with the determination of a late bloomer. She is based in Lillehammer for most of the year and Falls Creek when home in Australia.
She is part of growing depth in Australia in cross-country skiing with national firsts in mixed and women’s team events, while building a career anchored in steady improvements, team reliability and a professional balance beyond the tracks.
Her rapid rise at a late age is a story of resilience and perseverance. After a broken leg early in the previous year, she fought back to earn national honours as Snow Australia’s Female Cross Country Skier of the Year in 2023. That northern winter she debuted at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Planica, racing every individual event: her best finish was 37th in the 15km skiathlon, she placed 38th in the 30km classic, and teamed with Phoebe Cridland for 17th in the team sprint. The same season included her first World Cup starts in Lillehammer, Beitostølen and Falun.
Falun also provided an early marker of her World Cup competitiveness. Ellen placed 47th in the women’s 10km classic, a top‑50 finish that affirmed her capacity at the highest level. She also featured in Australia’s first World Cup mixed 4x5km relay later that March in Falun, underlining the program’s growing depth.
Momentum continued into 2023–24. At the Goms World Cup in January, Ellen scored World Cup points with 49th in the sprint and joined Rosie Fordham, Seve de Campo and Lars Young Vik for 16th in the mixed 4x5km relay, performances that nudged Australia upward in the Nations Cup standings. The following December, she and Fordham narrowly missed the women’s team sprint final in Davos, finishing 18th, an encouraging sign in a high-class field.
The 2024–25 season marked new championship milestones. At the Trondheim 2025 World Championships, Ellen and Rosie reached the women’s team sprint final for the first time by an Australian pair, placing 15th. Ellen then skied the second leg of Australia’s women’s 4x7.5km relay to a best‑ever national result of 12th. Individually she placed 41st in the 10km classic and did not finish the skiathlon on a day of attrition, rounding out a championship that showcased both her progress and Australia’s expanding relay calibre.
Either side of the Worlds, Ellen maintained a full race load, including Falun in February where she placed 55th in the sprint and 57th in the 10km classic.
To secure qualification for Milano Cortina 2026 Ellen, and the Australian team, raced across Europe in November and December 2025. At the Ruka World Cup in Finland, Ellen was the leading Australian in the Sprint finishing 59th, 15 seconds outside the top 30. She was 64th in the 10km Classic, four places behind teammate Roise Fordham. At the next World Cup in Norway she was 68th in the Sprint and 73rd in the 10km Freestyle. Her best results of the season came at the Davos (SUI) World Cup in December, where she was 54th in the 10km Freestyle and 58th in the Sprint.
Away from racing she balances work, studies with two bachelor's degrees and in her downtime she knits and watches TV. Norwegian athletics track star Karsten Warholm provides her with sporting inspiration. Her home Australian mountain is Falls Creek, and she trains with the Heming club in Norway.
