The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has decided to allow athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete in the 2026 Winter Paralympic Games in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo as neutral athletes. This significant decision was made at the IPC General Assembly held in Seoul on February 27, 2025, marking a step towards the reintegration of these national Paralympic committees into international sporting events. The vote by the IPC General Assembly to admit both the Russian and Belarusian national Paralympic committees as full members paves the way for their athletes' participation, provided they meet specific criteria set by individual international sports federations. These criteria include securing a license for the 2025/26 season from the relevant federations for sports such as skiing, biathlon, snowboarding, bobsleigh, skeleton, and curling. Currently, these federations are in the process of evaluating athletes for these licenses, and the IPC is collaborating with national committees to facilitate the practical implementation of these measures.
This decision by the IPC follows a similar move by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on September 19, 2025, which authorized Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete in the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games under strict neutral conditions. The IPC had previously suspended the Russian and Belarusian Paralympic Committees in 2022 following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Athletes from these nations had participated under a neutral status at the 2024 Summer Paralympics in Paris, with 88 Russian and 8 Belarusian athletes competing. The Russian Paralympic Committee welcomed the IPC's decision, calling it "a fair decision" and "an example of how athletes' rights should be protected without discrimination on national or political grounds."
Conversely, Ukraine's Sports Minister condemned the decision, highlighting the ongoing conflict and urging European partners to uphold Olympic values. Historically, Russian and Belarusian athletes competed as Neutral Paralympic Athletes in the 2018 Winter Paralympics due to doping scandals, and they were excluded from the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. The future participation of these athletes now hinges on endorsements from their respective international sports federations, illustrating the complex relationship between geopolitical events and athletic competition. The IPC's decision reflects a broader trend among international sports organizations to balance inclusivity with the current political climate, aiming to preserve the spirit of competition and athletes' rights.