Twelve days after the closing ceremony of the Olympic Games, the Verona Arena will host the opening ceremony of the Milan-Cortina 2026 Paralympic Games on Friday evening. A preview of an edition that promises to break records, judging by the success of last month's Games.
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Like the number of venues. Omnipresent during the Olympic Games, Milan will take a backseat this time with only one sport: para ice hockey. Cortina d'Ampezzo will be the beating heart of these Games with para alpine skiing, para snowboarding, and wheelchair curling. Finally, Tesero will host para biathlon and para cross-country skiing.
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The price, in euros, of the cheapest tickets on sale is also a factor. The organizing committee has aimed for attractive prices: a maximum of 80 euros for the men's para ice hockey final, between 40 and 60 euros for the curling finals, and a maximum of 40 euros for para biathlon, para cross-country skiing, para snowboarding, and para alpine skiing. Tickets for the ceremonies cost a bit more: between 100 and 650 euros for the opening ceremony in Verona, and between 150 and 350 euros for the closing ceremony in Cortina.
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Milan-Cortina 2026 marks the 50th anniversary of the Paralympic Games. The very first edition was held in Örnsköldsvik (Sweden) in 1976. At the time, 198 athletes from 16 countries participated. Only two sports were on the program: para alpine skiing and para cross-country skiing.
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That's the total number of events on the program. Among them is mixed doubles wheelchair curling, which started on Wednesday and is featured in the Games for the very first time.
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As is the number of athletes who will participate in these Games. It's a record: the 600-athlete mark has never before been surpassed at the Paralympic Games. Fifty National Paralympic Committees will be represented, including El Salvador, a first, with David Chavez (para cross-country skiing).
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Six Russian athletes are participating in these Paralympic Games, officially representing Russia, and not under neutral status as at the Olympics in February. Four Belarusians are also present. This has prompted several countries, including Ukraine and Poland, to boycott the opening ceremony, as the war continues.
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The cumulative television audience for the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Games reached 2,367 billion people. A record. The system put in place this year in Europe gives hope for even better results: the European Broadcasting Union announced Unprecedented free coverage of the Milan-Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games across 27 European territories. (…) Together, broadcasters will offer the public at least 900 hours of free multi-platform coverage. »
