Winter Paralympics 2022 LIVE: Opening ceremony takes place without Russian athletes
Paralympics are officially opened at the Bird’s Nest in Beijing - follow all the latest updates
Latest updates from the Winter Paralympics opening ceremony as the Games begin against the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
After initially ruling that Russian and Belarusian athletes would be able to compete under a neutral flag on Wednesday, the International Paralympic Committee made a dramatic U-turn on that decision yesterday. The IPC’s president, Andrew Parsons, admitted the situation in the athletes’ village had “become untenable” as several countries threatened to boycott the Games in protest. “What is clear is that the rapidly escalating situation has now put us in a unique and impossible position so close to the start of the Games,” he said. “Yesterday we said we would continue to listen, and that is what we are doing.”
Russia reacted to the announcement by claiming they would launch an emergency lawsuit with the Court of Arbitration for Sport, however, on Friday a statement confirmed that their athletes are now “planning to leave the capital of the Winter Games”. Ukraine’s delegation of athletes has arrived safely in Beijing, with committee president Valeriy Sushkevych hailing their participation as “a miracle”.
There will be 24 British athletes competing at the Games, as ParalympicsGB bid to emulate the record seven-medal haul scooped in South Korea four years ago.
Follow the opening ceremony live below:
Winter Paralympics opening ceremony
Now, Ukraine’s Paralympians make their way out into the centre of the Bird’s Nest.
After hailing their arrival as a “miracle”, the team’s president, Valeriy Sushkevych, said: “There are two frontlines right now. One is in Ukraine for our soldiers. And one is here in Beijing.”
Winter Paralympics opening ceremony
China’s Paralympians enter the arena.
Winter Paralympics opening ceremony
President Xi Jinping and Internation Paralympic Committee president Andrew Parsons wave from a raised platform as the opening ceremony gets underway.
Ukrainian team’s safe arrival in Beijing was a ‘miracle'
The president of the Ukrainian Paralympic committee, Valeriy Sushkevych, hailed the team’s safe arrival in Beijing as “a miracle”, with some having narrowly escaped bombs as they left during the Russian invasion.
“I can say that this is a miracle that we managed to be here at the Paralympic Games,” he said. “The easiest way for us would have been to not go to the Paralympics. But we couldn’t give up and not come.
“A superpower wants to destroy my country. And our presence here at the Paralympic Games, it’s not just a presence. It’s a sign that Ukraine was, is, and will remain a country. For us, it is a matter of principle to be here, it’s a symbol to show that Ukraine is alive.”
Winter Paralympics opening ceremony
There are just five minutes until the opening ceremony gets underway.
ParalympicsGB bid to emulate record medal haul
There are 24 British Paralympians competing in Beijing, making it ParalympicsGB’s second-biggest team since Lillehammer 1994. They are seeking to emulate the record seven-medal haul scooped in South Korea four years ago.
Lawrence Ostlere spoke to skier Millie Knight, who picked up two silver and a bronze in Pyeongchang.
Millie Knight: The skier going for gold whose story is told in a new braille book
Knight, who is visually impaired, won two silver medals and a bronze in Pyeongchang and is aiming for elusive gold in Beijing after recovering from her latest in a series of serious injuries
Opening ceremony takes place in shadow of war
The Paralympics’ profile continues to snowball with each Games that goes by but the next 10 days in Beijing might just top the lot.
Exactly 180 days ago, the curtain came down on a Summer Games characterised by joy, human achievement and bold sporting ambitions - the fitting global showpiece after over a year of gruelling coronavirus restrictions.
But this Games will be different, not so much the preserve of inspirational tales, celebration and resilience as an event catapulted further into the international spotlight owing to horrific military headlines.
Will Jennings reports from Beijing:
Winter Paralympics begin in shadow of war and without Russian athletes
Russian and Belarusian athletes were banned from competing at the Games on Thursday after a late U-turn by the International Paralympic Committee
Winter Paralympics opening ceremy
Welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of the Winter Paralympics opening ceremony in Beijing.
The Games will begin as planned in the early hours of tomorrow morning but the build-up has been entirely overshadowed by Russia’s continued invasion of Ukraine. The International Paralympic Committee on Wednesday announced that Russian and Belarusian athletes would still be able to compete under a neutral flag. But after countries threatened a mass boycott in response, the IPC’s president, Andrew Parsons, conceded the atmosphere in the athletes’ village had become “untenable” and barred all 83 Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing.
Russia initially threatened to sue the IPC and called for an emergency hearing with the Court of Arbitration for Sport. However, on Friday, the Russian Paralympic Committee subsequently admitted that the IPC rules state it has the power to refuse any athlete participation “at its sole discretion” and confirmed it was now in the process of organising the Russian delegation’s departure from Beijing.
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