Tensions in the athlete villages, threats of competition boycotts and an eleventh-hour reversal to ban Russian athletes have marred the lead-up to Friday’s opening of the Beijing Winter Paralympics.
Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine sent shockwaves through the Paralympic movement, with bitter wrangling over whether its athletes and those from ally Belarus – which hosted troops and military equipment – should be allowed to participate.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has urged sporting federations across the world to exclude athletes from the two countries.
On Wednesday, Paralympic organisers said the “harshest punishment” they could dish out was to allow athletes from those countries to compete as neutrals.