Canadian Paralympic Committee speaks out against decision to reinstate Russia, Belarus ahead of Games

The Canadian Paralympic Committee is speaking out against a decision to allow athletes from Russia and Belarus to return to the Paralympic Games to compete under their own flags and with their own anthems — a move the Canadian organization pushed back against last fall.

The International Paralympic Committee's general assembly voted in September to reinstate both Russia and Belarus. The Canadian Paralympic Committee voted against it.

"This decision is really based upon the principles we hold most important for sport," Canadian Paralympic Committee CEO Karen O'Neill said in an interview with CBC Sports on Thursday.

"It’s fair sport. It’s clean sport. It’s principled sport. It’s inclusive sport. And for us, right from the beginning, this is the third time we would have voted on this in the general assembly ... and the reasons haven’t changed."

Last September, the Canadian delegation argued on the floor of the International Paralympic Committee's general assembly that conditions hadn't been met to reinstate Russia and Belarus, which violated the Olympic truce with the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

"The [opposition to the] reinstatement really spoke to the IOC truce breach after Beijing, and then also not really resolving the systemic doping infractions," O'Neill said. "We had no evidence to suggest that those two had been addressed, so it’s for that reason."

Behind closed doors during the lead-up to the vote, O'Neill said it was emotional.

"I would say it’s probably one of the most impassioned, emotional issues that has been on the floor in the general assembly for the last several years," O'Neill said.

The decision that came out of September's vote created new backlash last week, after 10 combined slots were allocated to Russian and Belarusian athletes.

That came after a December Court of Arbitration for Sport decision that forced the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) to facilitate the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes.

Four athletes from Belarus will compete in Para nordic (cross-country skiing), and six athletes from Russia will compete, including two in Para alpine skiing, two in Para snowboard, and two in Para nordic.

The allocation prompted Ukraine's Paralympic committee to say its team would boycott the Games' opening ceremony, which will be held on March 6 in Verona, Italy. The Czech Paralympic Committee made a similar decision in solidarity with Ukraine, according to reporting from Reuters.

But that hasn't changed the International Paralympic Committee's decision from this past fall.

"This decision cannot be overturned ​by the board or by myself," International Paralympic Committee president Andrew Parsons said at a press conference in Italy earlier this week.