2025/2026 Para Cross-Country World Cup season preview
Dec 02, 2025·Para Cross-Country
The start of the 2025/2026 Para Cross-Country World Cup season is on the horizon, with three thrilling events lined up, culminating in the Winter Paralympic Games next March.
Beginning in North America before a return to Europe, with athletes eyeing a shot at gold in Milano Cortina, some of the world’s best will be in action.
Each event across the season will contribute towards qualification for the upcoming Paralympics, as we enter the home stretch.
2025/2026 Para Cross-Country Calendar
Three main events and a whole lot of racing stand between these athletes and the upcoming Winter Games. The 25/26 calendar begins in Canmore, Canada. A venue with a long history of hosting the World Cup, participants will descend on North America between the 4-7 December. A visit from FIS in the summer only reaffirmed the hosts’ readiness to bring some of Cross-Country’s finest to the slopes. Having undergone infrastructure upgrades, including an expanded stadium designed specifically for Para Nordic events.
The turn of the new year sees a return to Finsterau in Germany. It is the first time that the venue has hosted a World Cup event since 2020 but has done so on four occasions prior to January 14-18. The OC is a Ski Club, with members working closely together to welcome those from around the world. With the stage also lined up for 26/27, this will provide a great opportunity for them to host top athletes. Around 180 participants from 23 nations are expected, making it the main event ahead of the Winter Paralympics.
Then, before heading to MiCo, athletes will compete in races at Jakuszyce in Poland for the very first time. It is a new venue for the World Cup, and the event will be held between 28 January-01 February. Given the timing and location, there is certain to be plenty of excitement with the WPG right around the corner.
Finally, one that needs no introduction, athletes who have successfully qualified will head to Milano Cortina for the Winter Paralympic Games, held between 4-15 March 2026.
SKIERS TO WATCH: WOMEN
We kick off the skiers to watch in the VI races, where a handful of familiar faces are back in action. Despite being only 17, Czech international Simona Bubeníčková is gearing up for her third World Cup as she looks to add to an already impressive arsenal of results. On the podium in seven out of nine races in this competition between January 2024 and now, most recently a second and first at the end of the last campaign, the teen sensation is most definitely one to keep an eye on.
Leading a strong German contingent is Leonie Maria Walter, who clinched the globe across the 24/25 season thanks to a string of impressive performances. It is those kinds of outings she will need to replicate if she is to defend her 10km title at the upcoming Paralympics, while looking to better the bronze she won in the 6km and 12.5km races. She is joined by her globe predecessor Linn Kazmaier, who collected that accolade in the two campaigns prior to Walter reigning supreme, and Johanna Recktenwald, who has been ever consistent across the last few years. China’s Yue Wang is also a competitor of interest, storming onto the scene at the 24/25 World Cup with three podium topping results, ending all five races in the top three at least.
Moving on to the Standing event, you are met with arguably the best in the world right now in Norway’s Vilde Nilsen. A globe in the last three World Cup seasons, a 12-time World Champion, a three-time Paralympic medallist—in some ways, the 24-year-old is in a league of her own right now. The upcoming races will provide the perfect preparation as she goes hunting for a maiden gold at Milano Cortina. Nilsen is likely to be closely contested by Ukraine’s Oleksandra Kononova and Canada’s Natalie Wilkie in the pursuit of a fourth consecutive globe. A true veteran of the sport, Kononova has dominated podiums across all events and still remains consistently competitive despite a plethora of new faces. Wilkie, just 24, has really found her stride in the last three years, standing on the podium in 17 of her last 18 World Cup races. A three-time gold medallist at the Paralympics, the push for top spot between her and Nilsen in particular is one to keep an eye on.
The Sitting event has another strong list of competitors looking to ski their way into form ahead of next year’s spectacle. Kendall Gretsch of the U.S. is among those, winning the globe at the 24/25 World Cup. Medalling at both the Winter and Summer Paralympics, she is a fierce competitor who knows what it takes to win. Fellow American, Oksana Masters, and German skier Anja Wicker are equally in contention. Masters dominated this discipline in the WC for several years, and after being away last season, she is back to participate in the 25/26 campaign ahead of MiCo.
Rounding off this category is a strong Chinese delegation spearheaded by the talents of Shiyu Wang, and Korea’s Yunji Kim, who is the 2025 Sprint World Champion. Earlier this year, Wang took home gold in the 20km race as she continues to establish herself at the very top.
SKIERS TO WATCH: MEN
Beginning with VI, we kick things off with last season’s globe winner and current Sprint World Champion, Zebastian Modin of Sweden. The 31-year-old has been ever present and just as consistent across the World Cup over the last decade, as he looks to translate his golden form to the top of the Paralympic podium next March. His closest competitors come in the shape of Jake Adicoff (USA) and Inkki Inola (Finland). Adicoff has been similarly dominant in this discipline, often crossing the WC finish line first, while Inola is quietly finding his form as he looks to challenge those at the top of their game.
When it comes to Standing, a thrilling rivalry will be reignited between last season’s globe winner Taiki Kawayoke of Japan, and Canada’s Mark Arendz. Arendz will be looking to capitalize on home snow in Canmore to kick off his bid for the globe come the end of the 24/25 campaign. Looking to contest this thrilling pair is a Chinese trio that swept the 20km interval start podium in the World Championships in Toblach in February. Chenyang Wang, Xiaobin Liu, and Mingyang Qiu are looking to carry those efforts into the World Cup, laying down a marker ahead of Milano Cortina.
The strong Chinese representation follows on into Sitting, where Zhongwu Mao and Peng Zheng aim to fly the flag high on the podium. Across many Para disciplines, the nation has a plethora of athletes among the ones to watch both in the World Cup and at the Paralympics. Ukrainian duo Oleksandr Aleksyk and Pavlo Bal could also challenge for the top spots, both enjoying steady improvements over the last few seasons. Kazakhstan’s Yerbol Khamitov is another big name in the mix, a bona fide sprint specialist.
But the big-name contender has to be Brazilian superstar, and the winning of last season’s crystal globe, Cristian Westemaier Ribera. The 23-year-old has been on the scene since 2017, but in the last year or so he has really come into his own. Topping six out of 7 podiums last term, coming second in the seventh, he has been utterly dominating and will no doubt have a target on his back as the one to beat.
