Olympian’s widow gives birth to his daughter via IVF

(NEW YORK) — At the time Australian Olympic snowboarder Alex Pullin died in a spearfishing accident last year, he and his partner, Ellidy Vlug, were hoping to become parents, according to Vlug.

Now, nearly 16 months after Pullin’s death, Vlug has given birth to the couple’s first child, a daughter she named Minnie Alex Pullin.

Vlug gave birth to her daughter on Oct. 25, 2021, according to a photo of the newborn she shared with her followers on Instagram.

Pullin, who was Australia’s flagbearer at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, was 32 when he died in July 2020 off the coast of Queensland.

In June of this year, Vlug shared on Instagram that she was pregnant with their child via in vitro fertilization (IVF).

“When my love had his accident, we all held onto hope that I’d be pregnant that month. We’d been trying for a baby,” she wrote. “IVF was on our cards but it wasn’t something I ever imagined I’d be tackling on my own. Bittersweet like none other, I’ve never been more certain or excited about anything in my entire life.”

“Your Dad and I have been dreaming of you for years little one. With a heart wrenching plot twist in the middle, I am honored to finally welcome a piece of the phenomenon that is Chump back into this world!” Vlug wrote at the time.

Vlug shared her pregnancy journey on social media, writing about how her friends have supported her as she both mourned Pullin and prepared on her own to become a mom.

“My friends literally deserve a medal for the way they have shown up for me the past year,” she wrote in an Oct. 14 post, later adding, “I feel so grateful and lucky to be bringing Chumpy’s daughter or son into this love bubble.”