All posts tagged: Paralympic

Emanuel Perathoner rebuilt his career after a knee replacement and won Paralympic gold

Emanuel Perathoner rebuilt his career after a knee replacement and won Paralympic gold

Published by Jenni Sidey

He gave up skiing at eight years old. Too boring. That detail tells you something about Emanuel Perathoner before anything else does. The Italian snowboarder who stood on top of a Paralympic podium in Cortina on March 8, gold medal around his neck, crowd roaring in his home Dolomites, has always needed more than just speed. He needs the chaos around it. Snowboard cross gives him that. Six riders launching from the same gate, jostling through banked turns and jumps, everyone trying to survive and accelerate at the same time. It is not a lonely discipline. It suits him exactly. What it took to get him there, however, was a different kind of test entirely. Emanuel Perathoner stood on top of a Paralympic podium in Cortina on March 8, gold medal around his neck. (CREDIT: Remi Vallat/OIS) The Knee That Changed Everything In 2021, Perathoner attempted a jump called a double, clearing two rollers in sequence. He landed short. His tibial plateau, the flat surface at the top of the shinbone that forms the base …

Nina Sparks exclusive: ‘I was diagnosed with scary MS 5 years ago – now I’m a Paralympic medalist’

Nina Sparks exclusive: ‘I was diagnosed with scary MS 5 years ago – now I’m a Paralympic medalist’

Published by Daniella Wilson

Before she has even touched the snowy slopes in Northern Italy’s Cortina, High Wycombe’s Nina Sparks is already making Paralympic Winter Games history. At 35 years old, she has conquered a feat many won’t ever achieve in their lifetime and has collected medals to prove it.   The athlete started her sporting journey in an unconventional way. Redefining the limitations of multiple sclerosis, she went from ‘ski mum’ at a school in Austria to slaloming her way to world champion status, all while dealing with a life-changing diagnosis that started with a numb foot and a blind eye.  Landing in Milan and travelling to Cortina, the Para Snowboarder was still taking in the eccentricities of the Olympic Village when she spoke to HELLO! ahead of her LL2 banked slalom event, which is raced against the clock on a course of tight turns.  Using an orthotic to walk and an ankle foot orthosis in her boot to help her on her board, the athlete will be vying for a spot on the podium in her category, …

Winter Paralympic athletes have found business opportunities : NPR

Winter Paralympic athletes have found business opportunities : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

Zach Williams, a U.S. para alpine skier, lowers himself into his molding rig. Williams was already a licensed prosthetist when he was introduced to his sport: skiing in a seated position. A double amputee, he’s walked on prosthetics since age two. Now his business helps other Paralympians get the right fit for their competitive gear. Emily Chen-Newton hide caption toggle caption Emily Chen-Newton PARK CITY, Utah — At the Winter Paralympics in Milan and Cortina, some athletes use prosthetics. But, because every person’s body is different, competitors sometimes need to modify or design their own specialized equipment to fit their own disability. And some athletes are entering the business of prosthetics. Zach Williams is a U.S. para alpine skier who missed these Games due to injury. He was already a licensed prosthetist when he was introduced to his sport, skiing in a seated position. After a double amputation, he’s walked on prosthetics since age two. “I just knew the difference between something that’s really made for me and fits, and something that’s just off the …

Ukraine Accuses IPC and Local Paralympic Organizers of ‘Systematic Pressure’ at Milan Cortina Games

Ukraine Accuses IPC and Local Paralympic Organizers of ‘Systematic Pressure’ at Milan Cortina Games

Published by Sam Flores

CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy (AP) — Ukraine’s Paralympic committee has accused the International Paralympic Committee and Milan Cortina organizers of subjecting Ukraine’s athletes and coaches to “systematic pressure.” It released a statement Wednesday with a series of alleged incidents in which it said representatives of the IPC and the local organizing committee pressured and disrespected the Ukrainians. The incidents included the alleged forceful removal of a Ukrainian flag, the breaking up of planning meetings by the Ukrainian team, and the prohibition of a Ukrainian athlete from wearing a earring with the words “Stop War” in a podium ceremony. The IPC said it was caught by surprise by the Ukrainian statement. “We’re surprised by it because we’ve received no feedback from them through chef de mission meetings, which are held each morning,” Craig Spence, the IPC’s chief brand and communications officer, said at the media briefing on Wednesday. “In addition to that, we have not received any information from them through the formal or informal lines that exist in the Village,” he said. “There’s a lot of …

The week in pictures: War in the Middle East, Milan Cortina Paralympic Games and Holi celebrations

The week in pictures: War in the Middle East, Milan Cortina Paralympic Games and Holi celebrations

Published by Sam Flores

Home Middle East From Israeli strikes on Lebanon and tributes to Iranian victims of the new war in the Middle East to celebrations of Purim in Israel, Holi in India, and the Paralympic Games’ kickoff in Milan-Cortina, FRANCE 24 takes a look at the week’s most striking images. Issued on: 08/03/2026 – 12:51 2 min Reading time Plumes of smoke rise after Israeli air strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs, March 2, 2026. © Ibrahim Amro, AFP   Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men celebrate Purim in Jerusalem on March 4, 2026. © Ohad Zwigenberg, AP Mourners attend the funeral of victims of the Israeli-American war against Iran in the Iranian city of Qom on March 5, 2026. © Mehdi Alavi, AFP A boy plays with his sheep near an unexploded missile that landed in a field on the outskirts of Qamishli, eastern Syria, on March 5, 2026. © Delil Souleiman, AFP A woman is covered in coloured powder during Holi celebrations in Hyderabad, India on March 4, 2026. © Mahesh Kumar A., AP Migrants attempt to board a …

At the 2026 Paralympic Games, a ‘streamlined but ambitious’ French delegation

At the 2026 Paralympic Games, a ‘streamlined but ambitious’ French delegation

Published by Sam Flores

Paralympic athlete Arthur Bauchet, bib No. 20, with his supporters during the 2025 – 2026 FIS Para Alpine Ski World Cup in Tignes (Savoie), on February 4, 2026. CONNOR OWENS/ACTIONPRESS VIA ICON SPORT Like the French National Olympic and Sports Committee, the French Paralympic and Sports Committee (CPSF) set high ambitions for the 2026 Winter Games in Italy, whose opening ceremony is taking place on Friday, March 6, in the Verona Arena. Four years earlier, in Beijing, the French team won 12 medals, including seven gold, finishing fourth in the nation’s ranking behind the host country, Ukraine and Canada. In Italy, the French team aims to match or even surpass that achievement. “The goal is to get at least 18 medals, including seven titles,” explained Jean Minier, CPSF sports director and deputy head of the delegation. “This objective is based on our athletes’ results in recent competitions, and it would allow us to maintain fourth place.” However, this ambition could be thwarted by the return of Russia and Belarus. Athletes from these countries had been …

Verona ceremony looks to lift Paralympic flame above world’s fractures

Verona ceremony looks to lift Paralympic flame above world’s fractures

Published by Sam Flores

VERONA, Italy, March 6 : Less than two weeks after bidding goodbye to the Winter Olympics, Verona’s majestic Roman amphitheatre hosts the Paralympic Games opening ceremony on Friday, against a dramatically altered global backdrop. The message of diversity and inclusion that the inaugural event of the 50th Paralympics aims to project must contend with absences tied to the protests against the choice to allow Russian and Belarusian flags on the field of play, as well as to air‑travel chaos caused by the U.S.–Israeli war with Iran. Unable to travel safely due to the conflict, two-time Paralympian Aboulfazl Khatibi Mianaei and Iran’s sole athlete would not take part in the Milano Cortina Games, the International Paralympic Committee said on Friday. Dubbed “Life in Motion”, the ceremony is intended as a tribute to life as transformation and will feature performances by former The Police drummer Stewart Copeland, rising Italian-Malian soul singer Mimi Caruso and DJ Miky Bionic, who plays his music with a bionic myoelectric hand. Planes flown by acrobatic pilots, including some who use wheelchairs, will …

Mideast clashes breach Olympic truce as athletes gather for Winter Paralympic Games : NPR

Mideast clashes breach Olympic truce as athletes gather for Winter Paralympic Games : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

A view of the arena in Verona, Italy, where the opening ceremony for the Milan-Cortina Winter Paralympics takes place on March 6. The Paralympic Games are being overshadowed by military conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East. Luca Bruno/AP hide caption toggle caption Luca Bruno/AP MILAN — Airstrikes by Israel and the United States against Iran, and counter-strikes launched by Iran against neighboring countries, breached the symbolic Olympic truce, approved by the United Nations, which urged nations to suspend all military activity until March 15. Fighting continued Sunday as more than 660 elite athletes with disabilities from around the world, including Iran, Israel and the U.S. were gathering in Italy for the Winter Paralympic Games. The family of at least one athlete remains stuck in Doha, Qatar, after air traffic was disrupted by the conflict. “They got on their flight from Doha to Venice and the flight turned around,” Michael Milton, a Paralympic Alpine skier from Canberra, Australia, told NPR. Milton said his wife and two teenage children spent 24 hours stranded in the airport …

Ukraine to boycott Paralympic Games ceremony due to Russian participation | Winter Olympics News

Ukraine to boycott Paralympic Games ceremony due to Russian participation | Winter Olympics News

Published by Sam Flores

The International Paralympic Committee has allocated 10 combined slots to Russian and Belarusian athletes. Listen to this article | 3 mins info Published On 20 Feb 202620 Feb 2026 Click here to share on social media share2 Share Ukrainian competitors will boycott the Milano Cortina Paralympics opening ceremony on March 6 in Verona, their committee has said, due to the authorisation of some Russian and Belarusian athletes to take part undertheir national flags. The International Paralympic Committee (IPC)’s allocation of 10 combined slots to Russian and Belarusian athletes has ⁠created a political storm over the upcoming Games, given bitterness over the four-year-old invasion of Ukraine. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list Russia, which has been excluded from much international competition due to the war, says it is wrong to mix sport and politics, while targeting disabled athletes is offensive. “The community of Ukrainian Paralympians and the ‌National Paralympic Committee of Ukraine are outraged by the cynical decision of the International Paralympic Committee to grant bipartite slots to russia and belarus (sic),” the Ukrainian committee said …

Paralympian Oksana Masters Beyond The Podium

Paralympian Oksana Masters Beyond The Podium

Published by Sam Flores

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