Ukraine will boycott the closing ceremony of the Winter Paralympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo on Sunday having also skipped the opening ceremony in protest at Russian and Belarusian flags being permitted.
In contrast in February’s Winter Olympics in northern Italy, the International Paralympic Committee has lifted a ban on Russian and Belarusian national symbols being shown at the Games for disabled athletes.
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When asked if Ukraine would take part in the closing ceremony, National Paralympic Committee of Ukraine president Valeriy Sushkevych told dpa on Saturday: “No, never. The flag of a state murderer will be raised there. These Paralympic Games are the worst in history.”
The 71-year-old accused Russian Paralympians of openly supporting Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin, who has been waging war against Ukraine for more than four years. Belarus has assisted Moscow in the conflict.
“The Russian gold medallists have dedicated their medals to Putin – not to the country or the Russian people. This shows that the athletes are not only representing their country, but also terrorism, war and military attacks. That is terrible,” added Sushkevych.
Lithuania has also announced that it would stay away from the closing ceremony in protest.
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“Lithuania will boycott the ceremony. We are deeply disappointed by the situation,” the delegation told dpa.
Ukraine and Lithuania, along with the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Latvia and Poland, completely boycotted the opening ceremony on March 6.
Only 28 of the 55 participating nations took part in the march-in with their athletes.
Unlike at the opening ceremony in Verona, the German team and athletes are among those who will take part in the closing ceremony at the curling stadium in Cortina.