Spectacular Paris Paralympics Set to Open This Wednesday
The opening ceremony on Wednesday at 19:00 BST will spotlight the Place de la Concorde, with the first of 549 gold medals set to be awarded the next day. The event will wrap up with the closing ceremony at the Stade de France on Sunday, 8 September.
Almost two million tickets have been sold for the Paris Games, with around 500,000 still available. Following the successful Paris Olympics, organizers are calling this just "half-time."
The Paris Games will feature a record number of delegations and female athletes, with television coverage reaching more territories than ever before.
Channel 4 will broadcast the Games, offering over 1,300 hours of live coverage across Channel 4, More4, Channel 4 Streaming, and Channel 4 Sport’s YouTube channel. BBC Radio 5 Live will provide commentary and updates on key events, along with dedicated evening programs, while the BBC Sport website will offer live text commentary daily.
International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons expressed his enthusiasm, stating, “I often say that these will be the most spectacular Paralympic Games ever, and I believe it in my heart.”
France will host the summer Paralympics for the first time, although it previously held the Winter Games in Albertville in 1992. Great Britain will be represented by 215 athletes across 19 sports in Paris, a slight decrease from the 227 who competed in Tokyo. This includes 116 men and 99 women.
The oldest British representative at the Paris Games is 54-year-old canoeist Jeanette Chippington, who first competed forParalympics GB at the 1988 Games in Seoul. The youngest is 13-year-old swimmer Iona Winnifrith, with 14-year-old table tennis player Bly Twomey also in the squad.
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Leading the British medal charge is Sarah Storey, competing in her ninth Games and aiming to extend her gold medal count to 19. At 46, she will compete in the cycling road race and time trial, focusing on road events rather than track.
In the velodrome, British medal hopes rest on Kadeena Cox and Jody Cundy, part of a strong team. In athletics, Hannah Cockroft seeks to extend her dominance in the T34 100m and 800m and add to her seven Paralympic golds.
Sammi Kinghorn is another key British contender on the track, while Will Bailey aims to secure gold in table tennis once more, having won at Rio 2016.
Swimmer Alice Tai returns after missing Tokyo due to injury and amputation of her right leg below the knee last year. Para-archer Jodie Grinham will compete while 28 weeks pregnant.
In wheelchair tennis, 30-time Grand Slam champion Alfie Hewett aims to win his first Paralympic gold. In Para-triathlon, former schoolmates Lauren Steadman and Claire Cashmore will vie for gold again, following Steadman’s victory in Tokyo 2020.
Dave Clarke, chief executive of ParalympicsGB and a former athlete who competed in blind football at the Beijing and London Games after debuting in goalball at Seoul 1988, told BBC Sport that he aims to ensure the 2024 team has the best possible experience.
"Our athletes are thrilled to have the chance to compete in front of packed venues and to showcase their talents, celebrating with friends and family once again," Clarke said. "While winning medals is a key focus, we are part of a remarkable global movement striving for the recognition of disabled individuals in society, and our performances on the field support this mission."
Following a strongperformance at the Olympics, where France finished fifth in the medal table, the hosts are eager to build on that success for the Paralympics, both in competition and in the event’s overall atmosphere.
Among France's gold medal hopes is Para-triathlete Alexis Hanquinquant, one of the French flagbearers at the opening ceremony. He aims to defend his title in the PTS4 category from Tokyo.
"The Olympic Games were a tremendous success with enthusiastic crowds and a vibrant atmosphere. We’re all hoping to replicate that energy at the Paralympics," Hanquinquant said. "With iconic venues and the beauty of Paris, I believe we’re in for an exceptional Paralympic Games."
"The first leg is over, and now it's time for the second. Come and cheer us on—you won't be disappointed. The party continues!” said Hanquinquant.
Hanquinquant and the event organizers will be hoping that the River Seine does not pose any issues during the Paralympics, following the delay of the men's Olympic triathlon and the cancellation of training sessions due to poor water quality.
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Among the prominent global names in Paris is Brazil’s Petrucio Ferreira, the fastest Paralympian in the world, aiming to defend his T47 100m title. Ferreira’s world record stands at 10.29 seconds.
Germany’s Markus Rehm, known as the Blade Jumper, is vying for his fourth Paralympic long jump title in the T64 category. His world record of 8.72m is the ninth longest jump of all time, with his 2024 best at 8.44m—distances that would have won Olympic silver in Paris and gold in the previous four Games.
In Para-athletics, Valentina Petrillo is set to make history as the first openly transgender athlete to compete at the Paralympics. Representing Italy in the women’s T12 classification for athletes with visual impairments, Petrillo, who transitioned in 2019, will run in the 200m and 400m. She has described her participation as an "important symbol of inclusion."
over 30 female athletes signed a petition to the president of the Italian Athletics Federation and the ministries for Equal Opportunities and Sport, challenging Petrillo’s eligibility to compete in women’s races.
As with the Olympics, Russia and Belarus are barred from sending athletes due to the ongoing war in Ukraine. Nonetheless, some athletes from these countries will compete as neutrals. The NeutralParalympic Athletes (NPA) delegation will include up to 90 competitors from Russia and eight from Belarus. All NPA athletes were independently vetted to ensure they have not supported the war and are not affiliated with the military.
The Paralympic Refugee Team will be represented by eight athletes, including Zakia Khudadadi, who will compete in the K44 -47kg Para-taekwondo event on the first day of competition. Khudadadi, originally from Afghanistan, represented her country in Tokyo after being safely evacuated just before the Games.
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