On Saturday, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) made the decision to allow para-athletes from Russia and Belarus to participate in the Paralympics in Milan and Cortina in March.
We have many Ukrainians and Russians in the sport and if it happens, it will be a strange atmosphere, given that it involves such large teams, says Zebastian Modin to SVT Sport.
Modin, who has taken four silver and four bronze medals in the Paralympics, emphasizes to the TV channel that he supports Ukraine in the war one hundred percent.
In order for a Russian or Belarusian athlete to be allowed to compete in Italy in March, the athlete must have an active competition license for the 2025-2026 season, which is issued by the relevant sport's international special federation, writes the news agency AFP.
In the case of cross-country skiing, it is the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (Fis) that decides whether athletes from Russia or Belarus can finally compete in the Paralympics.
At the summer Paralympics in Paris last year, individual athletes from the countries were allowed to participate under a neutral flag. At the winter Paralympics in Beijing in March 2022, Russia was completely banned after the invasion of Ukraine began at the end of February that year.
