Paris. Just weeks after hosting the Olympic Games, Paris kicked off the final chapter of its sporting summer with the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games.
Against the backdrop of the setting sun, thousands of athletes marched down the famous Champs-Élysées avenue to the Place de la Concorde in the centre of Paris.
Some 50,000 people watched the ceremony from stands set up around the iconic square, the largest in Paris and visible from afar by its ancient Egyptian obelisk. Access for wheelchair users was facilitated by asphalt ramps along the avenue.
More than 4,000 athletes with physical, visual and intellectual disabilities will compete in 22 sports over the next 11 days.
The organisers had promised a spectacular opening. It was once again outside the confines of a stadium, but unlike the Olympics, which included a parade on a boat down the River Seine, this one was on dry land.
As French President Emmanuel Macron and International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons looked on, fighter jets flew over the city, leaving behind trails of the red, blue and white colours of the French flag. The delegations then entered the square in alphabetical order.
Some delegations were huge — more than 250 from Brazil — and some were small — with a handful from Barbados and just three from Myanmar.
Thomas Jolly, the artistic director who also led the Olympic ceremony, said the event would “showcase Paralympic athletes and the values they embody” and promised “unprecedented performances.”
The July 26 ceremony emphasized inclusivity and fun. Wednesday’s gala exalted the human body.
Organizers said more than two million tickets had been sold for the competitions. The first medals will be awarded on Thursday in taekwondo, table tennis and track cycling. Athletes are grouped by disability level to ensure the greatest possible equality. Only two of the sports on the program, goalball and boccia, do not have an Olympic equivalent.
Parsons said the expected crowds in Paris would mean a lot to the athletes, many of whom competed in front of empty stands in Tokyo three years ago because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Because our ambition is to be perceived and understood as the most transformative sporting event on the planet, having that environment is important,” he told The Associated Press on the eve of the opening.
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– 2024-09-04 15:41:04
