Croatia will not participate in the opening ceremony of the 2026 Paralympic Games in Italy due to the admission of russian and Belarusian athletes under their flags.
“The participation of athletes under the national symbols of the country that has been carrying out aggression for years and endangering the sovereignty and territory of Ukraine, international law, and fundamental European values, and violating all Olympic and Paralympic ideals, as well as the one supporting it, is completely unacceptable,” Croatian Minister of Tourism and Sports Tonči Glavina said in a post on X.“As a sign of solidarity with Ukraine, the Croatian government has decided that government representatives will not participate in the opening ceremony of the Winter Paralympic Games, given that Paralympians from russia and Belarus are allowed to compete under their national symbols,” the statement said.
