The best yet on ice and snow: Excitement builds 100 days out to Winter Paralympics in Italy

More than 600 athletes competing across six sports, delivering the best performances yet on ice and snow.

That’s what International Paralympic Committee (IPC) president Andrew Parsons expects in just 100 days, when the 2026 Winter Paralympics begin in Italy. The Milano Cortina Winter Paralympic Games run from March 6-15.

“We will be seeing athletes defying everything that people think is possible, like [visually impaired] skiers coming down a hill at 100 kilometres per hour, the ability in Para ice hockey, the precision of wheelchair curling,” Parsons told CBC Sports. “And we will see that in stunning sceneries like with the Dolomites as the background. Just incredible venues.”

Next year’s Games will mark the 50th anniversary of the first Winter Paralympics in 1976 in Sweden. For the world’s top winter Para athletes, it also marks the return of fans after pandemic restrictions kept them away from Beijing in 2022.

“Being able to have that back again means a lot to us,” said Parsons, who has been the president of the IPC since 2017. “We had a very good experience in Pyeongchang eight years ago, and now it's time for this new generation of athletes to compete in front of good crowds.”

Athletes will compete in 79 medal events across six different sports: Para alpine skiing, Para biathlon, Para cross-country skiing, Para ice hockey, Para snowboard and wheelchair curling.

A new medal event will make its debut in Italy: wheelchair curling mixed doubles.

Beyond how each sport has grown over the last few years, Parsons is most proud to see how the Paralympics can be a platform for inclusion. 

"Sport is the element that drives that change, so sport has to be of the highest quality to excite people around Paralympic sport," Parson said. "I think we are going to see this in Milano Cortina. We're going to see great sport on a global platform, so this will advance the rights of persons with disabilities."

The numbers back that up: A study commissioned by the IPC and released this past summer found that the 2024 Summer Paralympics in Paris “triggered major changes in attitudes towards persons with disabilities and is now regarded as one of the most recognized sport events on earth.”

The researchers surveyed more than 15,000 people in 11 countries before and after the Paralympics, and found 79 per cent of those surveyed said the Games “made them more supportive of the inclusion of persons with disabilities in all areas of society," according to the IPC.

In Italy, Canada will be led by six-time Paralympic medallist and retired alpine skier Mac Marcoux, who will serve as the team’s honorary captain.

Marcoux, who is from Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., will be joined by five co-captains who are expected to compete in Italy: Ina Forrest (Spallumcheen, B.C./wheelchair curling), Alexis Guimond (Gatineau, Que./Para alpine skiing), Brittany Hudak (Prince Albert, Sask./Para nordic skiing), Tyler McGregor (Forest, Ont./Para ice hockey), and Tyler Turner (Campbell River, B.C./Para snowboard).

Marcoux’s advice to the Canadian athletes who will be performing in Italy is to enjoy every moment of it, including the journey that got them there.