Winter Paralympics 2026: Why isn’t snowboarding taking place in Milano-Cortina?

Fans following the Winter Paralympics will have discovered figure skating missing from the program in Milano Cortina despite it being one of the most popular sports at the Olympics.

There are only six sports at the Games: alpine skiing, para-biathlon, cross-country skiing, para-ice hockey, wheelchair curling, and para-snowboarding.

For skiing to be included in the Winter Paralympics, the International Ski Union (ISU) needs to be recognized by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).

The IOC will also need to agree to a range of conditions that affect how the sport is run, including venues, costs and determining classification categories for competing athletes.

But there are growing calls from skaters for the sport to be included and the International Paralympic Committee says it is keen to expand the Paralympic programme.

No new sports have been added since Para-snowboard in 2014.

Speaking in Milan-Cortina, IOC President Andrew Parsons said: “We have not reached the ceiling as per our agreement with the IOC (International Olympic Committee) in terms of the number of athletes in sport. But it is not just about the ceiling, it is also about the quality of sport at international level.”

“For example, we don’t have ski sports, we don’t have short course, we don’t have snowboarding, because these sports are not at the international level,” he added.