Ukrainian athletes barred from wearing kit featuring map of Ukraine at Winter Paralympics 2026

Valerii Sushkevych, President of the National Paralympic Committee of Ukraine, has reported that the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) banned Ukrainian athletes from wearing a kit featuring a map of Ukraine at the 2026 Winter Paralympics.

Source: Ukrinform

Details: IPC representatives claim that the team's kit displaying the map of Ukraine is political.

Quote from Sushkevych: "We prepared our sports – in fact, not even sports but ceremonial – kit for the team. The International Paralympic Committee said: 'No, no, no – this will not do!' They claimed the kit was political. They said no one would allow us to appear in such attire. It was very beautiful, very symbolic and very clearly shouted that Ukraine exists in the world and in Europe with all its territories, without Russian occupation.

The map of Ukraine was prominently displayed on the kit. It was designed by our well-known designer Viktor Anisimov, who also created our kit for the Paris Paralympics [2024 Summer Paralympic Games – ed.]. At that time, we were in a kit with military accents, because alongside the blue and yellow there was the colour worn by our defenders at the front. It took a long time for that to be approved, but we pushed it through."

Details: He added that despite obstacles from the IPC, a new kit was eventually produced.

Quote from Sushkevych: "This time we were more radical. Our radicalism was driven by the fact that after Paris this escalation of leniency towards Russia intensified with renewed force. There are officials in the Paralympic bureaucracy who are watching to ensure Ukraine cannot present itself as a country without occupation and compete in such a kit against the aggressor state.

We barely managed to produce a new kit in time. We urgently shipped it by bus to Italy, where our team was by that point. We wanted to dress our lads and lasses [athletes] here in the kit that was ready, but it was banned. That's the situation."

Background:

• The Paralympic Games will take place from 5 to 16 March. Six Russian and four Belarusian para-athletes will compete under their own flags.
• IPC President Andrew Parsons said the decision regarding the participation of Russians and Belarusians is final and asked Ukraine and other countries that announced a boycott of the opening ceremony to reconsider.
• Sushkevych previously stated that Ukrainian Paralympians would not boycott the Games, as that would only play into Vladimir Putin's hands.
• Ukraine will compete at the 2026 Paralympic Games with the biggest-ever team.

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