Under the starry sky of the Verona Arena , amid spectacular choreography and the echo of geopolitical tensions, the Milan Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games officially opened .
The President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella , declared the opening of the event in an amphitheatre transformed for one evening into the beating heart of world sport .
The opening ceremony, however, was marred by small attendance and diplomatic controversy. Of the 55 participating nations, only 29 paraded their athletes on the Arena's red carpet , with volunteers replacing the flag bearers.
According to the International Paralympic Committee, many absences are due to logistical reasons—long travel times from the Olympic villages—and "performance concerns," given the proximity of the competitions scheduled for tomorrow morning. However, the political divide remains evident: seven nations—the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Ukraine—chose not to participate in the parade to protest the decision to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate, carrying anthems and flags. Added to this was the forced absence of Iran's only athlete, Aboulfazl Khatibi Mianaei, unable to travel to Italy due to tensions in the Middle East.
Throughout the parade, the Arena audience maintained a respectful atmosphere: no whistles of disapproval were raised when the representatives of Belarus, Russia, Israel, and the United States were called. Warm applause, however, greeted many delegations, with a standing ovation for Italy and particularly intense applause for Ukraine.
The event also offered moments of the highest artistic value under the theme "Life in Motion." The UNESCO monument vibrated with the drum duet between Stewart Copeland and Cornell Hrisca Munn and projections of the work "Circulatory System" by the artist Jago.
The parade, accompanied by the rhythms of Meduza, saw volunteers carry the flags of the absent nations, while short films recorded by the athletes who remained in the villages ran on the big screen.
