Alpine skier Aruwin Salehhuddin, who turns 22 on Feb 14, is all set to compete at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.
In alpine skiing, athletes race down snow-covered slopes, armed with only speed, balance and loads of courage.
At the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, Aruwin returns to the world’s prestigious winter sporting stage for the second time. But this time, she is Malaysia’s sole athlete.
Four years ago, in Beijing, she broke new ground as the first female athlete to represent Malaysia at the Winter Olympics. Today, she stands as the first Malaysian woman to compete at the Winter Games twice.
It’s a remarkable feat for someone in her twenties – in fact, she turns 22 on Feb 14, just a day before her first competition at this year’s Olympics.
“I’m incredibly proud to be a woman representing Malaysia. It feels like I’m representing all the strong women I know from Malaysia,” Aruwin told FMT Lifestyle.
That pride was clear at the opening ceremony, where she once again carried the Jalur Gemilang as Malaysia’s flag bearer – an honour she has received at both Winter Olympics she competed in.
It is a long way from where her story began – from her first steps on skis in the snow at the age of two to the athlete she is today.
Aruwin grew up in the US and first learnt to ski in Canada. “I fell in love with it, and I kept going back every weekend as much as possible.”
At the time, she and her parents were living in Washington state and the journey to Canada was long – but they always ended the same way, with time on the slopes, and a joy that kept pulling her back.
“I love the feeling of freedom when I ski – the adrenaline rush. When I’m in the flow, everything else fades away. Stress from life, or personal things I’m dealing with, just goes away when I’m skiing – especially when I’m skiing well,” she reflected.
Watching her ski, she glides with an elegance that makes the sport look almost effortless – belying years of intense training and injuries along the way.
She once broke her collarbone during a competition in Italy, skied through shin splints at the last Winter Olympics, and as recently as December, twisted her right knee while competing in China.
But those moments, Aruwin said, taught her perseverance.
“I do my best to push through, because otherwise it feels like a waste of all the money we’ve spent and my parents’ efforts,” said Aruwin, who is largely self-funded.
These days, she spends about eight months a year training in Europe under Belgian coach Kai Alaerts. The rest of her time is split between Colorado, where her family is now based, and Malaysia.
Her time in Malaysia is brief, but precious. Familiar flavours like nasi lemak ayam berempah and satay are among those she never missed, grounding her before she heads back to snow.
Long before she carried the Jalur Gemilang onto the world stage, sport was woven into the fabric of her upbringing.
An only child, Aruwin grew up in a home where the Olympics were not just watched, but lived – her father, Salehhuddin Ayob, represented Malaysia in slalom kayaking at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.
Looking back, Aruwin shared that the last Winter Games remains her most memorable competition – it marked her Olympic debut, the moment when years of training finally converged.
“It was the first time I got to compete with incredible athletes such as Mikaela Shiffrin and Federica Brignone,” she recalled, adding that at the Beijing Games, she became the youngest athlete to represent Malaysia at the Winter Olympics.
“This time around, I want to see how much I can actually push and how fast I can go. To ski a bit braver and see how much I’ve improved since the last Olympics,” she shared.
To other young women athletes, she shared these words of encouragement: “Always stay true to yourself. Know what it takes to get there and surround yourself with people who truly support you. Give yourself enough rest when you really need it, so you can continue to push harder when you need to.” - FMT
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