Ukraine accused the International Paralympic Committee of supporting Russia in the war and discriminating against its athletes and fans at the 2026 Winter Paralympics. The foreign and youth and sports ministers of Ukraine made a joint statement expressing outrage at the committee’s decisions.
In the statement published by Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Andriy Sybiha and Matviy Bidnyi emphasized the discriminatory treatment of the Ukrainian team and their fans. They also stated that, in their view, the International Paralympic Committee took a position supporting Russia in the armed conflict by allowing the use of Russian and Belarusian national symbols at the event. Simultaneously, the committee limited the display of Ukrainian symbols, specifically banning the yellow-blue colors.
On February 18, 2026, it became known that several athletes from Russia and Belarus would compete under their national flags at the Paralympics. This sparked a wave of indignation in Ukraine amidst the ongoing military conflict. Sybiha emphasized that no national flags should be raised at such events while active war continues.
Earlier on March 2, it became known that the committee did not allow the Ukrainian delegation to wear ceremonial uniforms with the image of the map of Ukraine, calling it political. The Minister of Foreign Affairs sharply criticized this decision.
