MOSCOW, February 28. /TASS/. Cross-country skiers and members of the Russian delegation will represent their country at the Parade of Athletes during the official Opening Ceremony of the 2026 Winter Paralympic Games in Italy next month, President of the Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC) Pavel Rozhkov told TASS on Saturday.

"The Russian Paralympic delegation is set to participate in the Opening Ceremony of the Paralympics in Italy," Rozhkov stated. "Cross-country skiers and members of the delegation are expected to take part in the event."

"Alpine skiers and snowboarders will skip the ceremony because they must be preparing for the competitions that begin the next day and their preparation is certainly a priority - this is a common practice," he continued.

"According to our information, volunteers were granted the right to be the flag-bearers," Rozhkov added.

Last week, RPC President 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).