7 European countries boycotted the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Winter Games due to the presence of the flags of Russia y Belarusexcluded from the Olympism following the invasion of Ukraine.
Precisely this country led the protest in the events organized in the Verona Arenaboycott that they supported Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland. Other delegations such as France o Germany They did not participate directly in the Verona Arena, but their representatives could be seen via video.
In the case of Spain, Audrey Pascualthe flag bearer, competes this Saturday in the Downhill and could not be present at the Verona Arena. As in other delegations, a volunteer carried the national flag and the 8 Spanish athletes competing in these Games could be seen on a giant screen.
message of peace
“I declare open the Winter Paralympic Games Milan Cortina 2026“said the President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarellajust as he did at the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games on February 6.
For his part, the president of the International Paralympic Committee, the Brazilian Andrew Parsonslamented the turbulent situation in which the world finds itself with the beginning of the Iran War, which has precisely prevented the only representative of the Persian country from going to Italy. Parsons noted that ““Sport offers the world another way to follow.”. “Here nations meet as neighbors and athletes compete with ferocity and justice, united in mutual respect for the rules of sport,” he claimed.
Gianmaria Dal Maistro, Paralympic alpine skier with visual impairment, and Francesca PorcellatoParalympic cross-country skiing champion and also a participant in the Summer Paralympic Games, had the honor of lighting the cauldrons located in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo.
The most numerous in Winter
Milano Cortina 2026 will be the largest Winter Paralympic Games in history both in participating countries, 56, and in number of athletes, 612, among which are 8 Spaniards. Figures that far exceed the 564 representatives from 49 nations at PyeongChang (South Korea) 2018, the edition that held the record until now. In Örnsköldsvik (Sweden), in 1976, the first winter Paralympic edition, 198 skiers from 16 teams participated.
In Milano Cortina 2026, in addition, there will be the debut of five countries, among which El Salvador stands out, which has never competed in a winter Olympic or Paralympic Games.. The delegations of Portugal, Haiti, Montenegro and North Macedonia, which had been in Olympic events, will also debut. For the fourth consecutive edition, a record number of women, a total of 160, which represents an increase of eighteen percent compared to the previous record of 136 set in Beijing 2022.
