CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy (AP) — The president of the International Paralympic Committee was disappointed with the complaints made by Ukraine's National Paralympic Committee during the Milan Cortina Games, saying they appeared to be an attempt to shift the focus from sports to politics.
Andrew Parsons spoke with The Associated Press on the final day of the Winter Paralympic Games on Sunday, praising the outcome of the competition and discussing the return of the Russian flag and anthem, the effects of the warmer weather and the challenges of organizing the event at widespread venues.
Parsons called it “disappointing” that the Ukrainian National Paralympic Committee and the national committees of other nations tried to turn the focus away from sports.
He said he was “super empathetic” with the situation in Ukraine and can “only try to imagine the horror,” but as a sports organization, the IPC must make sure that rules are not broken, even by the Ukrainian committee.
“Yes, I think there was an attempt to always take the focus from sport,” Parsons said. “And I think at the end, even the other national Paralympic committees responded really well, focusing on sports. I understand, but it is disappointing to some extent.”
He said it was expected to see governments attempting to shift the focus toward politics, but it was regrettable that sports bodies were doing it.
“I do hope this is a lesson learned also for those NPCs that have chosen to focus more on the political side than on the sport side, because sport has prevailed,” he said.
Ukraine and a few other nations boycotted the opening ceremony — and were set to boycott Sunday's closing ceremony as well — because of the IPC's decision to give Russian athletes wildcard entries for the Games and allow them to compete under their own flag for the first time in more than a decade.
Ukraine's accusation
Ukraine’s Paralympic committee accused the IPC and Milan Cortina organizers of subjecting Ukraine’s athletes and coaches to “systematic pressure.” It said the incidents included the alleged forceful removal of a Ukrainian flag, the breaking up of planning meetings by the Ukrainian team, and the prohibition of a Ukrainian athlete from wearing an earring with the words “Stop War” at a podium ceremony. The IPC and local organizers defended their actions.
Parsons said it was expected that some nations weren't happy with the return of the Russian flag, but he felt that the “vast majority” of the national Paralympic committees focused on sport, “because the sport element of it is what helps us fulfill our mission, which is to make for a more inclusive world through Para sport, and not external politics.”
“There was still some voices out there trying to continue focusing on what, in our opinion, should not be the focus of these games, but I think the overall impression of the people, especially people at home watching on TV or following the media, following the news, is (the focus) was more on athletes, more on sport, records, than in politics,” he said.
Russian flag going forward
The Russian flag flew at the Paralympics for the first time since the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, and the anthem was played for the first time at a major global sporting event since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The return of the Russian flag and anthem was seen by some as a signal of a possible full-fledged return to Olympic circles ahead of the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles.
Parson said the general assembly made the vote to lift the suspension solely with the best interests of the Paralympic movement in mind.
“We don’t think that we are going to initiate processes,” he said. “I know some people believe that this might have the impact on another sporting body, but that’s not what we’re focusing on. It’s for the IOC to make their decisions, it’s for FIFA to make their decisions, and every other international organization to make their decisions."
Warmer weather
Parsons said discussions will continue about the effect of warmer weather on the Paralympics. Milan Cortina organizers had to change the schedule of some events because of high temperatures, and some athletes competed in shorts, T-shirts and tank tops.
“Unfortunately, global leaders are not responding in the speed that is necessary to slow down the process," he said. "So this is probably a trend that we will see in 2030, ‘34, ’38 '42 and so on. So we need to have those discussions, and we are having those discussions” within the IPC and together with the IOC and international federations.
“It’s a very big jigsaw puzzle,” Parsons said. “It’s not only, ‘OK, let’s move the Games one month in advance — Olympics in January, Paralympics in February.' That is also an impact on the regular season of those sports. So we need to consider all these different elements. These discussions are taking place. We are not sitting on our hands.”
Widespread Games
Parsons said the model of spread-out Games — with competitions and venues in different clusters to reduce the cost of building new facilities — is “here to stay.”
“I think the biggest learning is that it is possible to have great Games, even with that widespread venue master plan. It does not compromise the spirit of the Games, but, yes, brings additional complexity to the operations that needs to be mitigated, and needs to be well understood, and I think having this first experience here, we have a lot of learning to take to 2030, 2034.”
AP Winter Paralympics: https://apnews.com/hub/paralympic-games