2026 Paralympic Flame to Ignite at Stoke Mandeville in Under a Month

Paralympic Flame Journey Begins at Stoke Mandeville

The Paralympic Flame for the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games will be created on Tuesday 24 February in Stoke Mandeville, United Kingdom, the spiritual birthplace of the Paralympic Movement. The ceremony, supported by Worldwide Paralympic Partner Allianz, will attract around 400 guests and mark the start of a 2,000-kilometre journey that will take the Paralympic Flame across Italy, culminating in the Opening Ceremony at the Arena di Verona on 6 March 2026.

The honour of creating the Paralympic Flame will be bestowed on Great Britain's three-time Paralympian and four-time Paralympic medallist in Para alpine skiing Millie Knight, and Andrea Macri, captain of Italy's Para ice hockey team, who is gearing up for his fifth Paralympic Games.

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Attending the event and paying tribute to the critical role Stoke Mandeville played in the formation of the Paralympic Movement will be International Paralympic Committee (IPC) President Andrew Parsons, ParalympicsGB Chair Dan Brooke, and Countess Elizabeth Howe, His Majesty's Lord Lieutenant of Buckinghamshire on behalf of WheelPower.

IPC President Andrew Parsons said:

"We are greatly excited to once again create the Paralympic Flame at Stoke Mandeville, a place of great meaning and significance for the Paralympic Movement. In doing so, we will pay tribute to the visionary work of Sir Ludwig Guttmann and the role Stoke Mandeville played in the evolution of the Paralympic Movement."

"Milano Cortina 2026 is set to showcase Paralympic sport at the very highest level and will be the most beautiful Paralympic Winter Games ever held. Ahead of the Opening Ceremony, the Paralympic Torch Relay, presented by Allianz, will take place and, in our 20th year of partnership. We are extremely grateful to Allianz for their support of the Stoke Mandeville Flame Lighting event."

Giovanni Malagò, President of Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026, said:

"The lighting of the Paralympic Flame in Stoke Mandeville is a tribute to the origins of the Paralympic Movement and a renewed affirmation of the principles that guide Milano Cortina 2026. The Paralympic Flame that Andrea Macrì will bring to Italy represents an honour and a responsibility: the Flame will travel through territories and communities, promoting inclusion, participation and national pride."

"This journey represents a valuable opportunity to reaffirm the strategic importance of sport as a tool for civil and cultural growth. Milano Cortina 2026 will be an extraordinary opportunity to demonstrate our country's ability to welcome, innovate and promote Paralympic sport at the highest levels."

Ahead of the ceremony Andrea Macrì, athlete of the Italian Para Ice Hockey national team and Ambassador of Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026 said:

"Having the honour of lighting the Paralympic Flame in Stoke Mandeville, a symbolic place for our Movement, is a unique emotion that is difficult to describe. Since 2009, the Paralympic world has become my home, and over time I have had the privilege of meeting extraordinary people in the Italian Paralympic Committee and the International Paralympic Committee, who have become like family to me."

"Now, bringing the Flame to Italy, as Ambassador of the Milano Cortina 2026 Organising Committee and athlete of the Italian Para Ice Hockey team, means representing not only my country but the entire Paralympic Movement. I am grateful to the IPC for giving me the privilege of experiencing such a unique moment."

Millie Knight commented:

"It is an honour to create the Paralympic Flame at the birthplace of the Paralympic Games in Stoke Mandeville. Having competed in the last three Paralympic Winter Games for ParalympicsGB, I wish all the athletes the very best for their Games. The Paralympic Games is a unique experience and it is incredible how the Games has grown from its roots in Stoke Mandeville into the incredible global competition it is now."

Following the Paralympic Flame Lighting event, a special ITA Airways flight will transport the Paralympic Flame to Milan, Italy. From Milan, the Flame will arrive in Turin, where it will take centre stage at the first Flame Festival to mark the 20th anniversary of the Torino 2006 Paralympic Winter Games.

Further Flame Festivals will take place in Milan (25 February), Bolzano (27 February), Trento (28 February) and Trieste (2 March), transforming each stage into an opportunity for participation and celebration of the Paralympic community and its values.

At the same time, the Relay will be enriched by Flame Visits, public events organised by Allianz and Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026 to extend the Paralympic Torch Relay to central and southern Italy, with four stops scheduled in Rome (26 February), Bari (27 February), Naples (2 March) and Bologna (3 March). Also on 3 March, the five Flames from the Flame Festivals will arrive in Cortina d'Ampezzo, converging in the evocative Union Ceremony and giving life to a single Paralympic Flame.

On 4 March, the Paralympic Torch Relay will carry the Flame to Venice, where the first stage celebration will take place, transforming its passage into a moment of connection with citizens, schools and associations The next day, the Torch Relay will continue through to Padova for the second stage celebration and spreading enthusiasm and excitement throughout the Veneto region.

On 6 March, the Paralympic Flame will conclude its journey at the Arena di Verona as the Paralympic Opening Ceremony takes place in a UNESCO World Heritage Site for the first time. The arrival of the Flame in Verona will mark the official start of the Paralympic Winter Games.

The Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games will take place from 6 - 15 March 2026, bringing together the world's best winter Para athletes. Up to 665 athletes from approximately 50 nations will compete across 79 medal events in six sports: Para alpine skiing, Para biathlon, Para cross-country skiing, Para ice hockey, Para snowboard and wheelchair curling.

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Attribution/Source(s): This quality-reviewed publication was selected for publishing by the editors of Disabled World (DW) due to its relevance to the disability community. Originally authored by International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and published on 2026/01/30, this content may have been edited for style, clarity, or brevity.