Iran will not compete at the Milan-Cortina Winter Paralympics after the International Paralympic Committee confirmed its sole athlete cannot travel safely to Italy. Cross-country skier Aboulfazl Khatibi Mianaei, who was set to compete in two events, withdrew due to ongoing Middle East conflicts. The 23-year-old had been preparing to represent Iran at the Games.

IPC president Andrew Parsons described the situation as "heartbreaking" for the athlete, who has competed in the past two Winter Paralympics. The committee had worked tirelessly to find safe passage routes for the Iranian delegation, but escalating tensions made travel impossible. Parsons noted that communication with Iranian sporting federations had been severely hampered by disrupted systems.

The Middle East crisis intensified following joint US-Israeli attacks on Iran's military infrastructure, prompting retaliatory strikes across the region. With attacks continuing on multiple fronts, including Beirut and Tehran, the risk to human life was deemed too high for the Iranian athlete to travel. Khatibi Mianaei was scheduled to race in the men's sprint classic standing and men's 10km interval start classic standing events.