Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games open with stunning ceremony

It was a fitting way to begin an historic Games. The Opening Ceremony for the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games took place at the 2,000-year-old Arena di Verona.

These record-breaking Games will feature 611 Para athletes from 55 delegations, surpassing the competitor record set at PyeongChang 2018. The athletes will compete across six sports.  

As Italy hosts its second ever Paralympic Winter Games, athletes compete in five venues spread between Milan, Cortina and Val di Fiemme.

Older than the Colosseum in Rome, the Arena di Verona is a monument of Roman antiquity and has hosted performing arts and sport throughout its history, from the gladiatorial games to opera, live music and television spectacles. The only large Roman amphitheatre still regularly used for performances, the unique venue was on display around the world, combining its natural acoustics and perfect elliptical shape with modern technology. 

The 2026 Paralympic Winter Games prompted modernisation with a focus on accessibility. The Italian government has invested EUR 20 million into improving accessibility in and around the historic city of Verona, including parts of the Arena, public spaces and city routes.

 

From a single drop of water 

The Opening Ceremony, led by Artistic Director Alfredo Accatino and Creative Director Adriano Martella, drew on the energy of the Games theme, ‘IT’s your vibe’, for a joyful and radical, accessible and contemporary experience.

The stage concept was inspired by a drop of water that transforms from liquid to solid to enable winter sport. The water droplet was imagined at the centre of the scene, shaping the design of everything that came next. Closely linked to the design and staging, the complex flying system built for the Ceremony facilitated unprecedented aerial performances in the Arena.

 

Vibes in Verona 

The music began in a created ‘piazza’. Elisa “Helly” Montin, a Verona-based world champion drummer played directly to the athletes waiting to enter. 

Then, in the stands, Stewart Copeland, of the renowned band The Police, and Cornel Hrisca-Munn began drumming. Hrisca-Munn, born without forearms and with a disability in his leg, has shot to fame through the Global Drum-Off and Britain’s Got Talent. 

Together, the three drummers ignited the enthusiasm of the athletes and the public, spreading Paralympic energy from the Arena to the world. 

Chiara Bersani, an activist for accessibility, and a performance artist and choreographer with osteogenesis imperfecta, emerged from the stage at the end of the countdown. Bersani traced a blade of light with a gesture, signalling the moment this momentous Paralympic Winter Games could begin.

 

Emotion takes centre stage 

The dancers revealed the Italian flag, carried by model and influencer, Carlotta Bertotti, who champions acceptance of self. Bertotti carried the Italian flag and handed it to Veronica Yoko Plebani. Plebani has represented Italy at one winter and three summer Paralympic Games.

The crowd stood for the host nation’s national anthem, performed by Italian singer Mimì and accompanied by Ginevra Nervi and the Alpine choir from Verona. 

With her powerful stage presence and distinctive voice, the young artist brought intensity and authenticity to the performance.

 

Celebrating Paralympic history 

The Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games marks a special moment, celebrating 50 years of history and returning to Italy 20 years after the Torino 2006 Paralympic Winter Games. 

Athletes from 28 of the 55 competing National Paralympic Committees (NPCs) were expected to march during the Athlete Parade. The Andorran flag started the Parade, and Italian athletes were the last to enter the arena.

 

 

Canadian flagbearer Tyler McGregor is one of the most successful Para ice hockey players in the world. 

"It's such an incredible honor. I was shocked to receive that call. I was filled with pride and emotion,” he said. 

“We're so proud, and we love our country so much, and to be able to share this responsibility with (Para cross-country skier and biathlete) Natalie Wilkie as well, an athlete that has had so much success at the Paralympic Games, but is also a tremendous human being and an incredible ambassador for Para sport, not just in Canada, but around the world.” 

 

For some Para athletes this was a first, as their countries make their debut. Haiti, North Macedonia, El Salvador, Portugal and Montenegro all make their Winter Paralympic debuts at Milano Cortina 2026. 

Flagbearer Ralf Etienne entered the Arena as Haiti’s first ever Winter Paralympic athlete, competing in Para alpine skiing.

"I'm still processing that (I am) standing on the world stage, carrying my country's flag, showing the world Haiti,” he said. 

“I earned Haiti a seat in the Winter Paralympics for the first time in history. To me, this is being an ambassador to show what Haiti has. It is a force for good.”

 

Life in Motion with Miky Bionic 

Following the Athletes Parade, Michele Specchiale, known as Miky Bionic, the world's first DJ with a bionic hand, brought a message of innovation, inclusion and "Life in Motion". His prosthesis uses sensors that read muscle signals, allowing him to manipulate vinyls, mixers and controllers. 

Dancers dressed in red, green and blue formed the Agitos, the Paralympic logo.

 

Following a cello performance by Valentina Irlando, broadcast live from the Teatro Filarmonico, Giovanni Malagò, President of the Milano Cortina 2026 Organising Committee gave a speech. 

Then, International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons spoke to the world. 

“From 1976 to 2026, these Paralympic Winter Games will honour our past, celebrate our present and shape a more inclusive future," he said. "And we need that future now more than ever.” 

Parsons offered up Para sport as “a source of strength” to the world. 

"The Paralympic Village is a living model of what society can and should be: free from politics," he said. "It is a place where everyone is welcome, everyone belongs, and everyone is valued. A barrier-free community where potential is realised and opportunity is open to all. 

“And, tonight in this ancient arena – where gladiators once stood – we welcome a new generation of heroes.

“Paralympians are ready to redefine possibility, push the boundaries of human ability and show what humans can achieve when respected and provided with chances to succeed.” 

 

When the speeches concluded, the President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella, officially declared the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games open from the Presidential Box.

 

From Verona with love 

An Opening Ceremony in Verona could hardly pass without reference to Romeo and Juliet. Known as the ‘city of love’, Verona is famed around the world for Shakespeare’s story of star-crossed lovers.

At the centre of the stage, a mysterious structure – reminiscent of one of Leonardo da Vinci’s “machines” – rose into the air, operated by performers embodying the characters of Romeo and Juliet, connecting individuals from opposing factions.

One by one, the individuals brought together by the acrobatic performance became couples in love.

The performance led in to the entry of the Paralympic flag. The Paralympic flagbearers were Italian athletes Silvia Parente, Christian Lanthaler, Joseph Erlacher, Enzo Masiello, Dorothea Agetle and Angelo Zanotti.

The Paralympic torch, having relayed across Italy, was carried into the Arena by Italian wheelchair fencing champion Beatrice Vio. Vio and performers harnessed a symbolic fire effect, seemingly transforming the Arena into a giant Paralympic cauldron.

 

Two cauldrons, located in Milan at the Arco della Pace and, in Cortina d’Ampezzo, in Piazza Dibona, were lit simultaneously. For the first time in the history of the Paralympic Winter Games, the two Cauldrons will burn throughout the Games in two different cities.

Francesca Porcellato lit the cauldron in Cortina, as Gianmaria Dal Maistro simultaneously lit the cauldron in Milan.

 

A surprise message from space

That moment of Italian connection was followed by a more transcendental one.

Sophie Adenot, an astronaut from the European Space Agency, currently on board the International Space Station, invited spectators to consider how they can challenge and push human potential. Michaela Benthaus, aerospace engineer and the first wheelchair user to reach space on a suborbital flight, talked of her experience and the potential of dreams. Both women gave a special message to Para athletes for the Games.

The spectacular Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Opening Ceremony concluded with a grand musical finale reinterpreting the famous Italian song Nel blu dipinto di blu by Domenico Modugno.

Many voices and musicians, both famous and unknown, came together with a unique take on the song, incorporating musical styles ranging from rap, jazz, and folk to pop and rock, and classical to electronic and a cappella.

Representing diversity and inclusion, the song was the perfect close for a spectacular Opening Ceremony, officially marking the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games open.

 

 

 

Where to watch and listen to the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games

Secure your tickets for the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games  

Milano Cortina 2026, which takes place from 6-15 March 2026, is set to be the most beautiful Paralympic Winter Games yet. Ticket prices start at EUR 10 for children under 14, with approximately 89 per cent of the tickets available for EUR 35 or less.

For more information, please visit tickets.milanocortina2026.org