Ukraine Boycotts Opening Ceremony of Winter Paralympics
Kyiv has announced that its athletes will not participate in the opening ceremony of the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Paralympics, scheduled for March 6. The decision is a clear protest against the readmission of Russian and Belarusian athletes under their own flags. The Ukrainian Paralympic Committee issued an official statement explaining that the absence of the Ukrainian delegation from the opening ceremony is a demonstration of their rejection of the participation of athletes from Russia and Belarus. Days before this announcement, Kyiv had already communicated that its representatives would not be present at the ceremony either, underlining the seriousness of its position.Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the organizing committees of the Olympic and Paralympic Games had banned the participation of both countries under their own flags, allowing only the presence of athletes as neutrals. Ukraine had already expressed its disagreement with that formula, and now expresses its outrage at the full reinstatement. Ukrainian sports authorities argue that this decision contradicts the Olympic values of promoting peace, by allowing the participation of nations involved in the war conflict. Belarus is considered a close ally of Russia in the war. This incident adds to the recent tensions between Kyiv and the International Olympic Committee. The controversy adds a new chapter to the debate over the participation of Russia and Belarus in international sports competitions since the beginning of the conflict.Athletes from Russia and Belarus “did not pass the qualification process to obtain licenses” to compete in the Paralympic event, calling the organizers’ decision “shameful.”
Ukrainian Paralympic Committee
