General
The triumph of our skier at the World Cup. Took a medal in the first race under the Russian flag!
There was just a little time left before the anthem was played.
The cross-country skiing World Cup was the first international competition in four years where our athletes took part under the Russian flag. The return turned out to be quite successful, because we immediately managed to win the award, despite the high competition.
Important return
On December 2, 2025, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) made a landmark decision for Russian Paralympic skiers. They were not only allowed to participate in international competitions, but were also allowed to perform with national symbols. The International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) could only comply.
The first start for our skiers under the Russian flag was the second stage of the Cross-Country World Cup in Finsterau, Germany, in which about 200 athletes from 25 countries take part. 17 of our Paralympians also went to the start. Bureaucratic procedures caused certain concerns, but our entire team received the documents necessary to enter Germany.
“Athletes and staff of the Russian cross-country skiing team for people with musculoskeletal disabilities and sports for the blind have received Schengen visas and will take part in the World Cup in Germany,” said Pavel Rozhkov, president of the Russian Paralympic Committee, to Match TV.
This start was also important for our athletes from the point of view of selection for the upcoming Paralympic Games. Due to the lack of international starts, our athletes did not have ranking points.
“Participation in these competitions will allow you to gain rating points, which are a mandatory criterion for receiving bilateral invitations to the 2026 Paralympic Games in Italy,” reports the Russian Paralympic Committee.
I have my first medal
On January 14, a 10-kilometer “trial” was held in Finsterau for skiers with damage to the musculoskeletal system and visual impairment. There were six races in total. In the second race, our legendary Paralympian Ivan Golubkov took the start.
The multiple world champion and World Cup winner stayed among the leaders the entire distance and even showed the first result at the 5 km cutoff. He was 3.7 seconds ahead of closest pursuer Christian Ribera.
Unfortunately, in the second half of the race it was not possible to maintain the advantage. Ivan allowed himself to be overtaken by Olympic champion from China Zhang Peng (+14.6 sec). The third was another representative of the Celestial Empire, Mao Zhongwu.
There was a timid hope for a reward for girls with visual impairments. Anastasia Bagiyan had a great start, overtaking all her rivals at the 2.5 km mark. But the Russian champion failed to stay in the lead until the finish. She showed the sixth result. Stanislav Chokhlaev was even closer to the podium. Among men with visual impairments, he took fourth place. The multiple Paralympic medalist was only six seconds short of bronze.
Source: Sportbox
Thomas Astudillo is a sports journalist and author who writes for Sportish. He has a deep love and knowledge of sports, and is known for his engaging and informative writing on the latest sports news and events.