Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism Holds Send-off Ceremony for Korean National Team at Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Paralympics

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, together with the Korea Paralympic Committee, will hold the "2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Paralympics Korean National Team Send-off Ceremony" at 2 p.m. on February 2 at Olympia Hall in Olympic Parktel.

Approximately 150 people will attend the send-off ceremony, including Choi Huieong, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism; Jeong Jinwan, President of the Korea Paralympic Committee; Yang Oyeol, head of the national team; executives and staff from the Korea Paralympic Committee and regional sports councils; and officials from sports federations. The event will feature a video presentation of the athletes' training process, team introductions, opening remarks, a send-off address, flag presentation, and a congratulatory performance. Minister Choi is scheduled to deliver a message of encouragement to the athletes.

Choi Huieong, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, delivered an encouragement speech at the Korean national team send-off ceremony for the Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics held on the 22nd of last month at Olympic Parktel in Songpa-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism]

The 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Paralympics will be held across Italy from March 6 to 15. South Korea will dispatch a delegation of about 50 people (approximately 16 athletes and 30 officials) to compete in five sports: alpine skiing, snowboarding, biathlon, cross-country skiing, and wheelchair curling.

To prepare for the event, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Paralympic Committee will deploy advanced scientific equipment on-site, including hyperbaric oxygen recovery devices, low-frequency muscle stimulators, and compression cooling therapy devices. In addition to technical support, specialized personnel such as sports science researchers and equipment managers will be stationed locally to help athletes quickly adapt to the environment. Medical rooms will be set up in the athlete villages in Cortina and Predazzo, with medical staff maintaining a 24-hour emergency response system to ensure the safety and health of the delegation. The ministry also announced that it has distributed medical crisis response guidelines to all team members to prepare for common winter sports issues such as frostbite and cardiovascular diseases.

Furthermore, a "Korea House" featuring traditional Korean architecture will be operated locally in Italy as a venue for international sports exchange for people with disabilities, promoting "K-Sports" and Korean culture. A meal support center within Korea House will deliver freshly prepared Korean lunch boxes daily to the athlete villages and competition venues, and separate side dishes such as soybean paste soup, stir-fried kimchi, and perilla leaves will also be provided.

Minister Choi stated, "Every track you carve on the ice and snow is itself a part of the history of Korean sports for people with disabilities and a message of hope for our nation. I, along with all the people of Korea, will cheer for you to showcase your skills to the fullest and return home safely without injury."