The Latest Breaking News from Paralympic

Beijing (AFP) - As he lined up for his gold-medal winning race at his debut Winter Paralympics in Beijing, Canadian snowboarder Tyler Turner pretended he was going for a skydive.

The wind factor affected the entire field but the Brit is happy with his choices

Ellie Simmonds was joined by fellow Paralympic heroes at Hemel Hemostead's Snow Centre for an Paralympic swimmer Ellie Simmonds, and Paralympic cyclist turned GB Snowboarder Jon-Allan Butterworth joined other Summer Paralympic athletes at The National Lottery Paralympic Watch Party to celebrate the start of the Winter Paralympic Games.

Yet another Games finds itself overshadowed by the spectre of Russia.

Beijing (AFP) - 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.

The about-face came less than 24 hours after the International Paralympic Committee announced it would allow Russians and Belarusians to compete when the Games open on Friday.

Beijing (AFP) - Russian and Belarusian athletes were on Thursday banned from the Beijing Winter Paralympics over the war in Ukraine, with organisers bowing to international pressure and threats of a boycott.

COMMENT: International Paralympic Committee president Andrew Parsons revealed that Russian and Belarusian athletes would now be banned from competing at the Beijing Games, starting on Friday

There will be no Russian or Belarusian athletes at the 2022 Beijing Winter Paralympics after the IPC reversed its initial decision to allow their athletes to compete as neutrals

The options open to the British Paralympic Association include boycotting either Opening Ceremony and/or medal ceremonies - or refuse to compete at all

Russian and Belarusian athletes will be allowed to compete at Beijing 2022 despite the invasion of Ukraine