Paralympics 2024: Grand opening ceremony by French President Emmanuel Macron
Paralympics 2024 opened with a grand opening ceremony in Paris on Thursday (IST) by French President Emmanuel Macron, launching an 11-day competition in a city still recovering from the successful Olympics.
It was the first time a Paralympic opening ceremony had been held outside of the main stadium as Macron declared the Games open at a vibrant and lively ceremony in the sunny Place de la Concorde in the heart of Paris.
At dusk, 4,400 athletes from 168 delegations filed into the arena to a standing ovation, and chants from 30,000 spectators crammed into the bleachers surrounding the plaza, welcoming host nation France as the last country to compete.
Before Macron formally proclaimed the Games open, International Paralympic Committee (IPC) president Andrew Parsons expressed his wish for an “inclusion revolution” to the athletes and fans.
The Paralympics, which take place in Paris until September 8, will take place at 18 of the 35 Olympic sites, including the Grand Palais and the Stade de France.
Since the Olympics, ticket sales have increased. According to the organizers, almost two million of the 2.5 million available tickets have been sold, with multiple stadiums now sold out.
The nations hope
The host nation, France, hopes to significantly improve upon its eleven gold medals from 2021 when it finished 14th in the medal standings.
Paralympic giant, China brought a sizable team once more, having dominated the last Paralympics in Tokyo with 96 gold medals.
Despite the difficulties they encounter in training while the conflict against Russian forces rages at home, Ukraine, which has a reputation for being among the top medal-winning countries at the Paralympics, has sent a squad of 140 athletes to compete in 17 sports.
Due to the invasion of Ukraine, 96 athletes from Russia and Belarus will compete under neutral flags however, they are not allowed to attend the opening or closing ceremonies.