Russian skier wins fifth gold at Paralympics

She and her teammates are allowed to compete under their national flag after years of bans and restrictions

Russian skier Varvara Voronchikhina won her second gold medal of the Milan-Cortina Paralympics on Saturday, taking the women’s standing slalom. She had earlier won the super-G and claimed silver and bronze in the giant slalom and downhill.

This year’s event marks the first Paralympics where Russian athletes have been allowed to compete under their national flag after years of bans and restrictions in international sport.

Competing at her first Paralympic Games, Voronchikhina is also a two-time world champion, including in the super-G in 2021.

Ahead of Sunday’s closing ceremony, Russia has climbed to fifth in the medal table with nine medals.

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Skier Anastasia Bagiyan won gold in the women’s sprint on Tuesday, while Aleksey Bugaev took bronze in the men’s downhill standing event.

The Russian Paralympic team was cleared to compete earlier this year after Moscow won an appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against the International Ski and Snowboard Federation, which had barred athletes from Russia and Belarus despite the International Paralympic Committee reinstating them last year.

The Milano-Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games opened on March 6 and will run through March 15, with six Russian athletes competing in alpine skiing, cross-country skiing and snowboarding.