Visually impaired athletes at the 2026 Winter Paralympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo rely on sighted guides for navigation in sports like Alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, and biathlon. These guides provide real-time verbal instructions via helmet communication systems, ensuring safe and competitive racing. Sibling pairs among these athletes highlight the unique dynamics of trust and teamwork in Paralympic events.
The 2026 Winter Paralympics feature three sports with visual-impairment categories: Para-Alpine skiing, Para-cross-country skiing, and Para-biathlon. These are divided into standing, sitting, and visually impaired divisions. In Para-Alpine skiing, athletes compete in disciplines such as downhill, slalom, giant slalom, super-G, Alpine combined, and team events, using a sighted guide to navigate the slopes.
Guides ski ahead, communicating via a Bluetooth microphone and headphone system built into helmets. They provide verbal signals on direction, terrain changes, snow conditions, and course rhythm. In slalom, the pair must stay less than three gates apart; in giant slalom, super-G, and downhill, less than two gates. Spectators remain quiet to allow athletes to hear instructions clearly.
In Para-biathlon, which combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting, visually impaired athletes use an electronic rifle guided by acoustic signals. A high-pitched tone in headphones indicates aim precision, with the pitch rising as the gun aligns with the target's center. Missed shots result in time penalties or penalty loops.
Para-cross-country skiing involves racing over prepared tracks with a guide. Classifications ensure fair competition: athletes meet minimum impairment criteria for visual issues, such as damage to eyes, optic nerves, or visual cortex. Varying degrees of impairment fall under one category, compensated by factored time systems, like British skier Menna Fitzpatrick's 87.24% in the 2022 super-G, slowing the clock accordingly.
Sibling guide-athlete pairs add personal layers to these events. Belgian Eléonor Sana, blind from retinoblastoma since infancy, won bronze in the 2018 Pyeongchang downhill guided by sister Chloé. They communicate constantly, with Eléonor describing her vision as 'very blurry, like seeing through a cereal packet.' British brothers Neil and Andrew Simpson aim to retain their 2022 super-G gold; Neil has nystagmus, and Andrew provides 'constant feedback' on terrain and gates. Austrian Veronika Aigner, with congenital cataracts, and sister Elisabeth have earned multiple medals, including 2022 golds in slalom and giant slalom.
Guides receive medals alongside athletes, underscoring their essential role. As Andrew Simpson notes, 'It’s constant feedback, really,' emphasizing the psychological and physical demands of synchronized performance.
