Australia Names Flag-Bearers for Paralympic Winter Games Opening Ceremony

Ben Tudhope and Georgia Gunew have been named Australia's flag-bearers for the Paralympic Winter Games opening ceremony. The ceremony is scheduled for Saturday morning AEDT at the Verona Arena, marking the beginning of the Paralympics, which will continue until March 15.

Veteran Paralympian Ben Tudhope

Ben Tudhope is participating in his fourth Winter Paralympics. He secured Australia's only medal at the 2022 Beijing Games, a bronze in para snowboard. Tudhope, 26, is the first Australian winter Paralympian or Olympian to achieve 50 World Cup medals. At the age of 14, he was the youngest competitor from any country at the 2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi.

"Something that I love about the Paralympics, and being here, is that your disability is the last thing that matters."

He further commented, "You walk around the village, you walk around the venues, and no-one cares if you have one leg or if you're blind or anything like that. We are elite sportspeople and we just want to do the best we can in our sport."

Paralympic Debut for Georgia Gunew

Georgia Gunew will make her Paralympic debut in para alpine skiing, with Ethan Jackson serving as her guide. This recognition occurs eight years after Gunew discontinued hockey due to diminishing vision.

Gunew expressed her reaction to being named a flag-bearer, stating, "If you'd asked 15-year-old Georgia if this was possible … this wasn't even a thought, not even a possibility."

She added, "So, if you told her this, she wouldn't have believed you. Being here, in this position, it is just such an honour. There isn't another word for it. I really can't believe I'm here and my thoughts aren't super straight right now because it's just so exciting."