Country booed at Winter Paralympics opening ceremony after government boycotts
The Winter Paralympics officially kicked off in Verona last night but the event wasn't without its controversy.
Following the entertainment of the Winter Olympics last month, sport lovers will now have the chance to tune in and support ParalympicsGB in their quest for medal success.
ParalympicsGB have a 13 strong squad of athletes traveling to the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games and yet none of them were present at last night's opening ceremony.
Skiers Menna Fitzpatrick and Scott Meenagh had been due to be the UK representatives as the flag-bearers but they didn't show as they are due to compete today, whereas the UK government made it clear that it wouldn't be in attendance due to the disputed decision to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes compete under their own flag.
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And while the Winter Olympics opening ceremony was disrupted by the booing of US vice president JD Vance, it was the Russian flag which inspired boos on Friday (6 March) night, with those in the audience less than pleased with its presence considering the ongoing war with Ukraine.
It was the first time that the Russian flag has appeared at a Paralympic games since 2014, with both Russia and Belarus banned by the International Olympics committee just weeks after the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
However, the IPC (International Paralympic Committee) lifted the ban following a September vote, with six Russian and four Belarusian athletes competing at the games.
This saw athletes and officials from seven countries including Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine all boycott last night's event, while ParalympicsGB athletes didn't show because of a sporting clash.
ParalympicsGB told LADbible: "ParalympicsGB have been clear throughout that we believe the ban on Russia and Belarus should have remained in place given the ongoing war in Ukraine. We continue to express our solidarity with the people of Ukraine and our friends at NPC Ukraine.
"ParalympicsGB has never boycotted a Games as we believe it only serves to punish the athletes who have worked so hard to qualify for Milano Cortina 2026. Athletes are not attending the opening ceremony for performance reasons as competition begins the following day and that decision was taken many months ago well before any suggestion athletes from Russia and Belarus would be competing.
"ParalympicsGB athletes will also feature in video content that forms part of the opening ceremony."
The UK government took a stronger stance in its statement, making reference to the 'barbaric' war against Ukraine, with just the Secretary of State for Sport Stephanie Peacock in attendance to support the athletes.
A spokesperson said: “We strongly oppose the decision of the International Paralympic Committee to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete under their own flags at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games.
"We have been clear that Russian and Belarusian states should not be represented in international sport while the barbaric full-scale invasion of Ukraine is ongoing. Therefore, no Government Ministers or officials will attend the Opening or Closing Ceremonies of the Paralympics.”
James Moorhouse