Australia at the 2026 Winter Paralympics
| Australia at the 2026 Winter Paralympics | |
|---|---|
| IPC code | AUS |
| NPC | Paralympics Australia |
| Website | www |
| in Milano Cortina, Italy | |
| Competitors | 14 (8 men and 6 women) |
| Flag bearers (opening) | Georgia Gunew & Ben Tudhope |
| Flag bearers (closing) | Lauren Parker & Sean Pollard |
| Medals Ranked 21st |
|
| Winter Paralympics appearances (overview) | |
Australia competed at the 2026 Winter Paralympics in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, between 6 and 15 March 2026. It competed in four sports for the first time: Para-alpine skiing, Para-snowboard, Para-cross country, and Para-biathlon.[1]
Administration
Ben Troy was the Australian Team Chef de Mission and Toby Kane Deputy Chef de Mission.[2][3] Snowboarder Sean Pollard was appointed team captain.[4] Since the Beijing 2022 Winter Games, the Australian Government invested $37.5 million in high performance winter programs through the Australian Sports Commission, with an additional $3.3 million to directly support athletes through dAIS.[5]
Competitors
| Sport | Men | Women | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Para alpine skiing | 3 | 2 | 5 |
| Para biathlon / Para cross country skiing | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| Para snowboard | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| Total | 8 | 6 | 14 |
Medallists
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Sports
Alpine skiing
- Men
| Athlete | Event | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Run 1 | Run 2 | Total Time | Rank | ||
| Josh Hanlon (LW12) | Downhill - Sitting | DNF | N/a | - | - |
| Slalom - Sitting | 50.02 (10) | 44.76 (8) | 1:34.78 | 9 | |
| Giant slalom - Sitting | 1:12.61 (13) | 1:14.68 (10) | 2:27.29 | 10 | |
| Super-G - Sitting | DNF | N/a | - | - | |
| Super combined - Sitting | 1:22.74 (16) | 47.02 (11) | 2:09.76 | 12 | |
| Michael Milton (LW2) | Slalom - Standing | 58.40 (22) | 54.53 (20) | 1:52.93 | 20 |
| Giant slalom - Standing | DNS | N/a | - | - | |
| Super-G - Standing | 1:21.98 | N/a | 1:21.98 | 23 | |
| Super combined - Standing | 1:22.50 (13) | 54.23 (14) | 2:16.73 | 13 | |
- Women
| Athlete | Event | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Run 1 | Run 2 | Total Time | Rank | ||
| Georgia Gunew / Ethan Jackson (guide) (AS2) |
Slalom - Visually Impaired | 52.21 (11) | 52.20 (11) | 1:44.41 | 11 |
| Giant slalom - Visually Impaired | 1:31.02 (12) | 1:30.34 (10) | 3:01.36 | 10 | |
| Liana France (LW6/8-2) | Slalom - Standing | 54.22 (15) | 53.57 (13) | 1:47.79 | 14 |
| Giant slalom - Standing | 1:26.69 (17) | 1:29.76 (14) | 2:56.45 | 15 | |
Biathlon
- Men
| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Final | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Missed shots | Time | Rank | Missed shots | Time | Rank | ||
| Matt Brumby (LW10) | Sprint pursuit - Sitting | 12:27.9 | 2 | 27 | Did not advance | ||
| Sprint - Sitting | N/a | 2 | 32:34.6 | 28 | |||
| David Miln (LW12) | Individual Sitting | N/a | 3 | 44:27.0 | 20 | ||
| Sprint pursuit - Sitting | 11:57.7 | 4 | 25 | Did not advance | |||
| Sprint - Sitting | N/a | 3 | 26:05.2 | 26 | |||
- Women
| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Final | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Missed shots | Time | Rank | Missed shots | Time | Rank | ||
| Taryn Dickens (NS3) Lynn Maree Cullen (Guide) |
Individual - Visually Impaired | N/a | 3 | 59:39.9 | 13 | ||
| Sprint pursuit - Visually Impaired | 19:43.1 | 3 | 13 | Did not advance | |||
| Sprint - Visually Impaired | N/a | 3 | 35:10.1 | 14 | |||
| Lauren Parker (LW10) | Individual - Sitting | N/a | 5 | 48:21.6 | 9 | ||
| Sprint pursuit - Sitting | 10:52.4 | 2 | 8 Q | 11:22.4 | 2 | 10 | |
| Sprint - Sitting | N/a | 4 | 26:40.6 | 13 | |||
Cross Country Skiing
- Men
| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Semifinal | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | ||
| Matt Brumby (LW10) | Men’s 10km classical - Sitting | N/a | 34:15.5 | 31 | |||
| Men's Sprint - Sitting | 3:31.62 | 37 | Did not advance | ||||
| David Miln (LW12) | Men’s 10km classical - Sitting | N/a | 28:20.3 | 20 | |||
| Men's 20km Interval Start - Sitting | - | 1:01:32.7 | 23 | ||||
| Men's Sprint - Sitting | 2:33.82 | 28 | Did not advance | ||||
- Women
| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Semifinal | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | ||
| Taryn Dickens (NS3) Lynn Maree Cullen (Guide) |
Women's Sprint - Visually Impaired | 5:21.76 | 13 | Did not advance | |||
| Lauren Parker (LS10) | Women’s 10km classical - Sitting | N/a | 29:39.5 | 8 | |||
| Women's 20km interval start - Sitting | N/a | 1:08:42.8 | 10 | ||||
| Women's Sprint - Sitting | 2:53.78 | 13 | Did not advance | ||||
Snowboarding
- Men
| Athlete | Event | Run 1 | Run 2 | Best time | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | ||
| Aaron McCarthy SB-LL1 |
Men's snowboard banked | 1:13.38 | 13 | 1:11.80 | 13 | 1:11.80 | 13 |
| Sean Pollard SB-UL |
1:01.78 | 9 | 1:01.74 | 11 | 1:01.74 | 12 | |
| Ben Tudhope SB-LL2 |
57.43 | 3 | 57.33 | 3 | 57.33 | ||
| Athlete | Event | Run 1 | Run 2 | Rank | Q/F | S/F | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Time | Rank | Position | Position | Position | ||
| Aaron McCarthy SB-LL1 |
Men's snowboard cross | DSG | 1:02.73 | 14 | 3 | N/a | 12 |
| Sean Pollard SB-UL |
55.09 | 59.05 | 13 | 1 Q | 3 | 9 | |
| Ben Tudhope SB-LL2 |
51.26 | 51.38 | 2 Q | 1 Q | 1 Q |
- Women
| Athlete | Event | Run 1 | Run 2 | Rank | Q/F | S/F | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Time | Rank | Position | Position | Position | ||
| Amanda Reid SB-LL1 |
Women's snowboard cross | 1:33.36 | 1:05.30 | 8 Q | DNF | N/a | 9 |
Reid withdrew from banked snowboard due to injuries suffered in snowboard cross.[6]
Notable team facts
- Lauren Parker and Amanda Reid became the eighth and ninth Australian athletes, respectively, to compete at both the Winter and Summer Paralympic Games. Both were previously gold medallists at the Summer Games: Reid in Para cycling and Parker in Para triathlon and Para cycling.[7]
- Amanda Reid became Australia's first Indigenous Winter Paralympian.[7]
- Michael Milton, at 52 years and 350 days when the Games opened on 6 March, became the oldest ever Australian Winter Paralympian. He overtook Dominic Monypenny, who was 49 years and 163 days in his last event at the Vancouver 2010 Games. Liana France, aged 16 years and 211 days when the Games opened, is Australia's youngest competitor at the Games.[7]
- Taryn Dickens became Australia's oldest female Winter Paralympian, at 43 years and 277 days when the Games opened, overtaking Melissa Perrine who was 34 years and 19 days in her last event at the Beijing 2022 Games.[7]
External links
See also
References
- ^ Mannion, Tim (22 June 2025). "Federal Government Investment Powers Australia's Push to Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Glory". Paralympics Australia. Archived from the original on 2 July 2025. Retrieved 2 July 2025.
- ^ Sygall, David (10 March 2023). "New Winter Games Chef De Mission To Provide Rare Skill Combination". Paralympics Australia. Archived from the original on 2 July 2025. Retrieved 2 July 2025.
- ^ Mannion, Tim (13 September 2025). "Kane Appointed Deputy Chef de Mission For Winter Paralympics". Paralympics Australia. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
- ^ Sygall, David (14 October 2025). "How Pollard Went From Party Boy To Australian Team Captain". Paralympics Australia. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
- ^ Wells, Anika (16 March 2026). "Australia extends historic Winter Paralympic medal streak in Milano Cortina". Dept of Infrastructure Media Releases. Retrieved 23 March 2026.
- ^ Howe, Frances (11 March 2026). "'Unsafe': Paralympics ends for Aussie medallist after scary crash on controversial course". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 12 March 2026.
- ^ a b c d Zoe (28 February 2026). "Australian Team Finalised For Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games | Paralympics Australia". www.paralympic.org.au. Retrieved 12 March 2026.