Over 40 athletes and guides set for Milano Cortina 2026 benefitting from IPC support

Thirty-nine athletes and four guides representing 23 National Paralympic Committees (NPCs) that have benefitted from International Paralympic Committee (IPC) sport development programmes will compete at the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games.

For several years now, the IPC has been working closely with NPCs and international federations to further develop winter sports. The result is that Milano Cortina 2026 is on course to attract a record number of competing athletes and NPCs.

Among the 23 NPCs to have benefitted from IPC sport development programmes are four that will make their Paralympic Winter Games debut at Milano Cortina 2026 – El Salvador, Haiti, Montenegro and North Macedonia.

El Salvador has never competed at any Winter Games – Olympic or Paralympic – but will have two Para athletes competing in Para cross-country skiing - David Chavez and Jonathan Arias.

As part of the IPC’s Sport for Mobility programme, Chavez and Arias both benefitted from Competition Support Grants to the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) which enabled them to compete in Norway at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships Trondheim 2025. Arias also took part in Sport Technical Training in 2024.

By competing at the highest level, El Salvador secured two spots at the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games ensuring history can be made for the country. 

“It’s important because with that support, I managed to qualify for the Paralympic Games and with that support, we can qualify for many competitions,” said Chavez who only experienced snow for the first time in 2023 and has been training on the beaches of his home country.

“Being the first athlete from El Salvador to go to the Winter Games – I think I’m putting El Salvador’s name high.”

Haiti and North Macedonia will also make their Paralympic Winter Games debuts courtesy of Para alpine skiers Ralf Etienne and Zoran Jovanovski respectively, while Montenegro’s Paralympic Winter Games debut will come through Andrej Sibalic in Para snowboard. All three athletes benefitted from IPC Sport for Mobility Competition Support Grants through FIS which enabled them to send the Para athletes to international competition.  Jovanovski and Sibalic also benefited from Sport Technical Training support in 2024.

Kristina Molloy, the IPC’s Deputy Chief Executive Officer, said: “The IPC is committed to further developing winter Para sports and we are delighted that Milano Cortina 2026 will feature 39 athletes and four guides from 23 NPCs who have benefitted from IPC sport development programmes.

“The majority of athletes to have benefited from IPC support received Competition Support Grants from our Sport for Mobility programme, either through their NPC or respective International Federations. These grants are a valuable source of funding for travel to and from major international competitions enabling athletes to be classified internationally and compete at the very highest level. The result is several NPCs making it to the Paralympic Winter Games for the first time, while others have been able to increase the depth of talent in their teams for these Games.”

As part of efforts to increase the number of female athletes in winter sports, the IPC’s support has benefitted 10 female athletes and two female guides who are set to compete at the Games.

The 23 NPCs to benefit from IPC sport development support ahead of Milano Cortina 2026 are: Argentina, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Chile, Croatia, Czechia, El Salvador, Finland, Georgia, Haiti, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Mongolia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, and Slovenia.

IPC support for athletes, NPCs and International Federations has included Competition Support Grants, Sport Technical Training and other development programmes.