The official statement from the UK government confirms that ministers and official representatives of the country will not attend the opening and closing ceremonies of the Winter Paralympic Games, which will take place in 2026 in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo. This decision is a response to the allowance for athletes from Russia and Belarus to return their national symbols to the international arena.
The reason for this boycott is the decision of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) to allow six Russian and four Belarusian athletes to compete under their flags, marking the first such event at the Paralympic Games since 2014.
The UK is joined by the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Ukraine, which have also announced their intention not to participate in the ceremonial events.
Criticism of the return of Russian and Belarusian athletes has come from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, as well as from several European governments and international sports organizations. Many of them express concerns that the full participation of these countries could negatively impact the atmosphere of the upcoming games.
