Czech Republic athletes are celebrating a milestone achievement in the 2026 Winter Paralympics, ending a 16-year medal drought. The success comes as biathlete Carina Edlingerová secured a silver medal in the sprint event held in Tesero, Italy on Saturday, March 7, 2026.
Edlingerová, who began representing the Czech Republic this season, previously competed for Austria, where she earned a gold medal and two bronze medals in cross-country skiing at the previous two Paralympic Games. She finished the sprint just behind China’s Wang Jüe. This victory is particularly significant as it marks the nation’s first Paralympic medal in 16 years, highlighting the importance of continued support for adaptive sports.
Also competing for the Czech Republic, Simona Bubeníčková, a visually impaired athlete, finished fourth in the same event. The strong performance by both athletes demonstrates the growing strength of the Czech Paralympic team.
In addition to the biathlon success, the Czech para ice hockey team also achieved a winning start to their campaign at the Milan games, defeating Japan 3-2. Despite being outshot 30 to 4, the Czech team secured the victory thanks to goals from Radek Zelinka, Michal Geier, and 18-year-old Lukáš Kapko.
Japan initially took the lead with a goal from Kazuyoshi Niicu, but the Czechs quickly responded. Goaltender Patrik Sedláček expressed some frustration with the goals allowed, stating, “Japonci hodně kousali. Měli vždy jednoho hráče, který byl utrhnutý u naší modré čáry. Kluci toho hráče moc nehlídali, bohužel to dopadlo, jak to dopadlo. Jako gólmana mě zápas strašně štve. Čtyři střely, dva góly, to pro mě není vůbec dobrý obrázek. Výhra je ale samozřejmě důležitá,” according to Czech Television.
The Czech para ice hockey team, aiming to improve upon their three previous bronze medals from World Championships, will next face Slovakia on Monday and then Canada on Tuesday as they compete for a spot in the semifinals. The top two teams from the group stage will automatically advance to the semifinal round.
