The reason for the Czech athletes' refusal to participate in the opening of the games is the decision to lift restrictions on Russian athletes.
In an official statement from the Czech Paralympic Committee's press service, it is stated: "Our representatives will not be present at the opening of the Games in Verona, and there will be no flag bearers in Cortina d'Ampezzo. We will also not record messages from athletes for display at the ceremony."
Earlier, the Ukrainian team announced its intention to boycott the opening ceremony. Subsequently, official delegations from Estonia, Lithuania, and Poland joined them, stating they would also not participate in the event.
The Paralympic Games will take place from March 6 to 15. It is known that six Russian athletes, including skiers Alexey Bugayev, Varvara Voronchikhina, Ivan Golubkov, Anastasia Bagiayan, and Sergey Sinyakin, as well as snowboarders Dmitry Fadeev and Philip Shebbo Monzer, have received bilateral invitations for 2026. They will compete under national symbols.
