MOSCOW, February 25. /TASS/. A decision by the Finnish Paralympic Committee to boycott the Opening Ceremony of the 2026 Winter Paralympic Games because of Russia is ‘inhumane,’ a Finnish politician told TASS on Wednesday.
Earlier this month, delegations from Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Estonia and Finland announced their decision to boycott the official Opening Ceremony of the 2026 Winter Paralympics because of Russia’s participation in the event.
"Sports should unite nations and people, not be used as an instrument of division," Armando Mema, a member of Finland’s Alliance of Freedom, a conservative political party, said in an interview with TASS. "I feel it is inhumane to boycott the Games simply because Russia will participate. It is the wrong decision for Finland to boycott."
The Finnish politician pointed out that decisions of this nature contradict "the very principles of the Olympic Games — unity, fraternity and respect for opponents."
"I have played rugby myself for 13 years, and sports has a lot to teach in human terms and it shouldn't be used as an instrument to divide in politics," he continued. "Unfortunately, the anti-Russian sentiment is high today in Finland, the machine propaganda continue to play a vital role in this."
"I believe that such decisions to boycott sports or cultural events only because of Russians, only make Russians more united, making them feel bad about Europeans," Mema added.
Last week, President of the Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC) Pavel Rozhkov told TASS that six Russian Para athletes had received bipartite invitations to the 2026 Winter Paralympics.
The invitations were extended to three-time Paralympic Champion in alpine skiing Aleksey Bugayev, two-time World Champion in alpine skiing Varvara Voronchikhina, multiple World Champion in para cross-country skiing Ivan Golubkov, World Championship medalist in para cross-country skiing Anastasia Bagiyan and her guide Sergey Sinyakin, and para snowboarders Dmitry Fadeyev and Philipp Shebbo Monzer.
Russian Sports Minister and President of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) Mikhail Degtyarev announced last Wednesday that the country’s national delegation at the 2026 Winter Paralympic Games in Italy would consist of 23 members.
The 2026 Winter Paralympic Games will be held in Italy on March 6-15. The Russian Paralympians were allowed to compete at the upcoming Winter Paralympics under the national flag and to the tune of the country’s anthem. RPC President Rozhkov also announced last week that Russian Paralympians would take part in the Parade of Athletes at the Opening Ceremony of the 2026 Winter Paralympic Games in Italy next month under the national flag.
2026 Winter Paralympic Games
On January 20, the IPC revised its decision regarding the admission of the Russian national team to the 2026 Paralympics, allowing cross-country skiers, snowboarders, and alpine skiers to apply for invitations. In September 2025, the General Assembly of the International Paralympic Committee fully reinstated the Paralympic Committees of Russia and Belarus.
However, on October 23, 2025, the IPC press office announced that Russians would not be competing at the 2026 Paralympic Games due to the stance taken by certain sports federations. In particular, the Council of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) decided not to allow Russians to participate in international competitions, including the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The RPC later successfully challenged that decision with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).