More than 135 skiers from 25 countries are expected at the event, which will take place between February 10 and 19.

It will be the last major Championships before the Winter Paralympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, a year later.

Christian Eder, chairperson of the Local Organising Committee and sports club SV Finsterau, said: “We are very happy and proud to be the host to so many athletes and people from all over the world.

“Finsterau and the whole region are already looking forward to the Championships.”

The rest of the high-level race calendar for 2016-17 has also been confirmed.

Vuokatti, Finland, will once again be the World Cup season opener between December 9 and 16, followed by Western Center, Ukraine, from January 13 to 20.

After the World Championships, athletes will travel to the Alpensia Biathlon Centre between March 10 and 15, for a Pyeongchang 2018 test event.

The World Cup Finals will then round-off the season in Sapporo, Japan, between March 18 and 22.

Dimitrije Lazarovski, Head of IPC Snow Sports, said: “We are entering the most exciting phase of the Paralympic cycle and we expect the 2016-17 season to be thrilling.

“With the World Cup calendar leading towards the World Championships and then the test event in Pyeongchang, there is so much to follow in Para-biathlon and Para-cross-country.

“Finsterau ran a very successful World Cup last season and we are very much looking forward to seeing what they will do for the Worlds.

“We can certainly expect to see the standard of athlete performances step up as we move closer to the Paralympic Winter Games.”

The last World Championships were held in Cable, USA, in 2015.