Amber Glenn is not your typical, cookie-cutter figure skater.

Growing up, Glenn had been told to tone down her style and be more graceful on the ice. But she wasn't interested in conforming to the norms demanded by the sport she loved, choosing to skate for herself rather than everyone else. She took that same confidence with her when she came out as pansexual in December 2019 in an interview with the Dallas Voice. Since then, pride flags and adoring crowds follow Glenn at every competition she competes in, inspiring others like two-time Winter Olympian Kaitlyn Weaver to come out and share their own stories.

In Episode 1 of the My New Favorite Olympian and My New Favorite Paralympian podcast, titled "Amber Glenn: Shattering figure skating's gender norms," the skater opens up to hosts Chase Cain and Adam Rippon about her experience as an openly pansexual figure skater and how she's using her platform to push for visibility, inclusion, and mental health awareness on and off the ice. Weaver and Timothy LeDuc, the first non-binary Winter Olympian, join Glenn to discuss how they felt seeing her come out and reflect on their own journeys as queer athletes.

"I got a peek behind the curtain and realized everyone’s struggling, they just don’t talk about it," Glenn said. "That’s when I decided I wanted to be honest about who I am, because I didn’t want the next generation to go through what I did. I remember skating my first competition after coming out and seeing pride flags in the audience. People were cheering louder than ever. I almost started crying before I even skated. It was one of the most emotional performances of my life. I felt so free."

Hear all of that and more in this week's episode of My New Favorite Olympian.

Episodes of My New Favorite Olympian and My New Favorite Paralympian release weekly in the lead-up to Milan Cortina 2026.

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