Record number of athletes: Ukraine announces its team for 2026 Paralympics
2026 Winter Paralympics kick off March 6 (photo: paralympic.org.ua)
The Ukrainian national team has finalized its roster for the 2026 Winter Paralympic Games. This year’s blue-and-yellow delegation will be the largest in the country’s history, according to the Ministry of Youth and Sports.
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Historical Record
The XIV Winter Paralympics will take place from March 6 to 15 in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy. Ukraine will be represented by 35 athletes: 25 competitors and 10 guides.
The 25 qualified athletes mark a record for the Ukrainian Winter Paralympic team. For comparison, the previous 2022 Paralympics in Beijing saw 20 athletes and 9 guides.
Team Composition
Ukrainian athletes will compete in four sports:
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Para biathlon
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Para cross-country skiing
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Para alpine skiing
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Para snowboard
At the 2022 Beijing Paralympics, the “blue-and-yellow” team won a record 29 medals and placed second in the overall medal standings.
Boycott of the Opening Ceremony
The Ukrainian delegation officially refused to participate in the opening ceremony due to a major scandal surrounding the International Paralympic Committee’s (IPC) decision to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete under their national flags and anthems.
Ukraine also requested that the Ukrainian flag not be displayed during the ceremony to avoid standing alongside symbols of the aggressor countries.
Other countries joining the opening ceremony boycott include the Czech Republic, Poland, Finland, Latvia, Estonia, and the Netherlands. EU Sports Commissioner Glenn Micallef and several European officials from different countries will also boycott the event.
The Italian government has similarly expressed disagreement with the IPC’s decision to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete under their national flags at the 2026 Paralympics.
Previously, Ukraine announced that it would not broadcast the 2026 Paralympics opening ceremony due to the display of Russian and Belarusian flags.
