Ukraine urged not to boycott Winter Paralympics ceremony
· Yahoo Sports
Ukraine's athletes have been encouraged not to go ahead with a planned boycott of the Winter Paralympics opening ceremony.
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The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) says it hopes Ukraine will take part, but at present the team intend to stay away in protest against Russian and Belarusian athletes being allowed to compete under their national flags.
It was announced last week that six Russian and four Belarusian athletes will take part in the Milan-Cortina Games.
They are set to compete in alpine skiing, cross-country skiing and snowboarding, with the opening ceremony taking place on 6 March in Verona.
Russia and Belarus had previously been suspended from Paralympic competition. That followed Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with Belarus considered a close ally.
The Ukraine team stated that they would not take part in the opening ceremony following confirmation of Russia and Belarus being involved, and made a "demand that the Ukrainian flag not be used".
The Czech Paralympic Committee also announced it would not take part in the opening ceremony "in any form".
"This decision cannot be overturned by the board or by myself," said IPC president Andrew Parsons, referring to the return of Russia and Belarus.
Regarding Ukraine's stance, Parsons said: "We have a message to give that is one of inclusion and diversity. We encourage them to participate, but if they don't want to, we respect that."
Asked if he was concerned that more nations may withdraw from the ceremony, Parsons said: "What I'm afraid of is that sometimes these situations can be politicised."
- Ukraine Paralympians to boycott opening ceremony
- Six athletes to compete under Russian flag at Paralympics
In September 2025, the IPC lifted its ban on athletes from Russia and Belarus competing at the Games.
However, the IPC does not govern the six sports contested at the Paralympics and despite the individual bodies, including the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS), refusing to lift their own bans, Russia and Belarus won an appeal to the Court of Arbitration of Sport against FIS.
As a result, athletes have been able to return to FIS competitions and the 10 Paralympians have been awarded bipartite commission invitations to compete in Italy.
On Friday, in its statement announcing the opening ceremony boycott, the National Paralympic Committee of Ukraine described the IPC's decision as "shameful" and said it "completely contradicts the principles" of the Games.
The Milan-Cortina Winter Paralympics will take place from 6-15 March.