Paralympics 2026: all competitions in Cortina. The closing ceremony will be at the Ice Stadium

Summary:
Opening – Disciplines in Cortina – Accessibility – Tickets – Calendar – Closure

Opening

The Opening Ceremony of the Paralympics is scheduled for Friday, March 6, 2026, at the Arena di Verona: the first time a Paralympic ceremony will be held at a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Disciplines in Cortina

Cortina d’Ampezzo hosts three disciplines: paralympic alpine skiing, para snowboarding and wheelchair curling. Unlike the Olympics, there are no Paralympic competitions in Livigno, Bormio or Anterselva: the Games take place between Cortina, Milan and Val di Fiemme/Predazzo. Disciplines such as parabob, skeleton, and luge are not part of the Paralympic program: that is why the Cortina Sliding Centre is not included among the Paralympic competition venues.

Paralympic alpine skiing – Tofane, Olympia slope

Davide Bendotti ITA (LW2) competing in the Men’s Giant Slalom Standing Para Alpine Skiing at the Yanqing National Alpine Skiing Centre. Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympic Games, Yanqing, China, Thursday, March 10, 2022. Photo: OIS/Joel Marklund. Handout image supplied by OIS/IOC.

All of alpine skiing (men’s and women’s trials) is staged in Cortina on the Olympia slope of the Tofane. The busiest program is precisely that of alpine skiing, with seven days of competitions in which medals will be awarded practically every day: March 7, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14 and 15.

Para snowboarding – Socrepes (San Zan area)

Masataka Oiwane JPN (yellow), Yiqi Zhang CHN (green), Zihao Jiang CHN (blue) and Pengyao Wang CHN (red) compete in the Semifinals of the Para Snowboard Men’s Snowboard Cross SB-UL at the Genting Snow Park. Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympic Games, Zhangjiakou, China, Monday, March 07, 2022. Photo: OIS/Thomas Lovelock. Handout image supplied by OIS/IOC.

A little further downstream, in the Socrepes area, para snowboarding is competed on the track set up in the San Zan area, with jumps, undulations and parabolic curves typical of snowboardcross competitions. The set-up includes working and shaping the course with technical snow, with attention also paid to restoring the terrain at the end of the event. The competition days are March 7 and 8 and March 14, with medal awards on March 8 and 14.

Wheelchair curling – Olympic Ice Stadium

Hugh Nibloe GBR plays a stone during the Wheelchair Curling Round Robin Session 16 – Great Britain vs Latvia match at the National Aquatics Centre. Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympic Games, Beijing, China, Thursday, March 10, 2022. Photo: OIS/Chloe Knott. Handout image supplied by OIS/IOC.

Wheelchair curling will be hosted at the Olympic Ice Stadium, a modernized and expanded facility (new locker rooms, elevators and ramps), with interventions to facilitate access for athletes and spectators, including those with motor or sensory disabilities. Internationally, the discipline is particularly eagerly awaited because Milan Cortina 2026 will also see the debut of the mixed doubles specialty in the Paralympic program.The schedule is very tight: some sessions start as early as March 4, before the Opening Ceremony, and continue daily until March 14, with medal days from March 11 to 14.

The competing athletes

Italy is coming to the Games with a large delegation: the Italian Paralympic Committee indicates a team of 40 athletes (in addition to guide athletes), engaged in the six disciplines of the overall Games program. Among the most eagerly awaited Azzurri in Cortina is René De Silvestro, Italy’s flag-bearer at Milan Cortina 2026: originally from San Vito di Cadore, he brings to his home slopes a message of sport and community that speaks to the entire territory. Alongside him will be flag bearer Chiara Mazzel.

Statement by Gianluca Lorenzi, Mayor of Cortina d’Ampezzo.

“The Olympics, and even more so the Paralympics, belong first and foremost to the athletes: it is their time. The light must remain on them, on their stories, on the daily toil and talent they bring to the competition. Especially in the Paralympics, sport shows in an extraordinary way what determination, courage and respect mean.”

Accessibility- Cortina for All

The “Cortina for All” path is the program initiated by the municipality to make Cortina a usable and accessible destination in every season, with an integrated work that combines interventions on the territory, training and involvement of local operators.

Among the tools already activated are the 2026 Guide to Accessible Hospitality (with verified information and an accessibility score of facilities, developed with the Destination4All protocol in collaboration with Village for All – V4A), the adoption of the Destination4All Decalogue, and the implementation of the PEBA for the elimination of architectural barriers, consistent with the Regional Guidelines for Universal Accessibility and Inclusion.

Insights and materials in the Cortina for All section of the website.

Tickets

To purchase tickets click this link.

Calendar

For the full calendar this link

Closing Ceremony in Cortina

The Closing Ceremony of the Paralympic Winter Games will be held in Cortina on Sunday, March 15, 2026 at the Olympic Ice Stadium (Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium), also home to wheelchair curling. A concept dedicated to the “Italian souvenir” has been announced for the grand finale; the full cast will be announced gradually, and among the first confirmed talents is Arisa.
Tickets for the Closing Ceremony of the Milan Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games are available from 150 euros. To purchase tickets: https://tickets.milanocortina2026.org/en/search/?affiliate=26P