Ukraine banned from wearing 'political uniform' at Paralympics

Valerii Sushkevych, president of the National Paralympic Committee of Ukraine, said this in an interview with Ukrinform.

"We prepared our sports – or rather, not sports but ceremonial – uniform for our team. The International Paralympic Committee said: 'No, no, no – this will not do.' They said the uniform was political and that no one would allow us to appear wearing it. The uniform was very beautiful, very symbolic, and very emphatically 'shouted' that Ukraine exists in the world, in Europe, with all its territories without occupation by Russia," Sushkevych said.

The design of the Ukrainian team's sports uniform for the 2026 Paralympics was created by well-known Ukrainian designer Viktor Anisimov. It features a map of Ukraine with its 1991 borders. The image is repeated several times, creating the overall impression of a globalized map of Ukraine.

The photo provided to Suspilne by the National Paralympic Committee of Ukraine

Sushkevych believes the IPC's decision amounts to the Paralympic officials playing into the hands of the aggressor state at the Paralympics.

"There are already certain Paralympic officials there who are making sure Ukraine cannot present itself as a country without occupation and that it will compete in such a uniform against the aggressor state," he said.

He also noted that one of the reasons for creating the uniform was the growing level of leniency toward Russia worldwide, particularly the decision to allow Russian Paralympic athletes to compete under their own flag.

"This time we were more radical. Our radical stance is explained by the fact that after Paris [the 2024 Summer Paralympics], this escalation of leniency toward 'russia' has occurred with renewed force, with a new wave," Sushkevych said.

According to him, the team had to urgently produce a different version of the sports uniform and send it to Milan, where the Ukrainian Paralympic team is already located.

"We barely managed to produce the new uniforms, barely. We urgently transported them by bus to Italy, where our entire team is already staying. We could have dressed the boys and girls here in the uniforms that were already ready, but we were banned from using them," Sushkevych said.

The Winter Paralympic Games will begin in Milan, Italy, on March 6, 2026.

Overall, the Ukrainian team secured 25 qualification slots for the 2026 Paralympic Games.

Ukraine will be represented by 35 participants – 25 Paralympic athletes and 10 guide athletes.

Ukrainians will compete in four sports: para biathlon, para cross-country skiing, para alpine skiing, and para snowboarding.

Photo: National Paralympic Committee of Ukraine