Silver at the Paralympics, FISU World University Games gold

FISU Games history was made on Wednesday, 15 January as para cross-country skiing made its debut at Torino 2025.

For the first time in their 76-year history, the FISU Games introduced para-sports this winter, including alpine and cross-country skiing events. What made this debut particularly remarkable was that Wednesday’s para-cross-country skiing events, the men’s and women’s 10 km free technique, were held simultaneously with the non-disabled competition, creating a truly memorable moment for student-athletes from around the globe.

Silver in Beijing, gold in Torino

At the core of it all was Germany’s Marco Meier, who competed in the mens’ para-standing cross-country ski category. He came in having won silver at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics so, as he put it, “This is nothing new to me.”

The business law major from IU International University won gold with a time of 22:37.3,a testament, Marco Meier said, to all the training he has been doing since he was three years old. “For me, this is a special moment and it is also the first time we get to compete with the non-para athletes. I loved the experience.”

Kazakhstan’s Denis Zinov was second in 26.02.6 and Garik Melkonyan of Armenia claimed bronze in 26:28.6.

These new disciplines debuting at FISU World University Games open a window of opportunities for para- student-athletes in cross-country skiing, which Meier believes is an important step in the right direction.

“I hope it inspires all athletes not just in Germany but around the world and I hope more disciplines here will promote that.” As a student-athlete, finding the right balance between sports and education is essential. Although Meier admits it is difficult, he also added that his university greatly helps him ease the stress out.

Meier has plans on returning to the Paralympic Games in 2026 in Milano-Cortina, and the plan is to give his best performance over the next calendar year.

Maria and Inola also crowned

In addition to Meier’s victory in the men’s standing event, countrywoman Leonie Maria Walter, guided by Emily Rose Weiss, triumphed in the women’s visually impaired 10 km race with a time of 25:37.9. Johanna Recktenwald, also from Germany (guide Christian Krasman), claimed silver in 26:50.8, while Poland’s Aneta Kobryn (guide Katarzyna Witek) took bronze in 31:46.3.

In the men’s visually impaired 10 km, Finland’s Inkki Inola, guided by Reetu Inkila, prevailed in 22:51.4. Lennart Mattis Volkert (guide Nils Kolb) added to Germany’s medal count with a 24:17.0 silver-winning performance, while Roman Kurbanov of Kazakhstan (guide Anton Zhdanovich), secured bronze in 28:17.1.

The take place from 13-23 January. Watch all the competitions live on . Click on the link to find the full schedule.

Written by Esther Owusua Appiah-Fei, FISU Young Reporter, Ghana

The Young Reporters Programme exemplifies FISU’s commitment to more than sports competitions. At every FISU World University Games, a group of talented aspiring sports journalists are chosen to cover the competition.

We warmly thank FISU Official Partner Qiaodan Ltd. which provides remarkable uniforms to FISU Family and International Technical Officials since 2015. Qiaodan is a valuable partner for FISU as it continued to provide its support during the postponement of events due to the global pandemic, and recently extended the relationship with FISU up to and including 2025.