PARIS — Let the games begin again.
The Paralympic Games are set to open Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2024, as some 4,400 athletes with disabilities, permanent injuries or impairments prepare to compete for 549 medals across 22 sports over 11 days in Paris.
The French capital, which just hosted the Olympics, again provides the backdrop for what promises to be another spectacle, with many of the same venues hosting Paralympic competitions.
Historic square Place de la Concorde will host the
opening ceremony.
Equestrian returns to Château de Versailles, which will host para equestrian events. The Grand Palais transitions from fencing to wheelchair fencing. Archery venue Invalides will host para archery.
The venue beside the Eiffel Tower, which hosted beach volleyball during the Olympics, will host blind soccer, an adaption of the game for visually impaired players in teams of five with a ball containing rattles.
“We’ve got some monstrous iconic sites, and we’re going to get an eyeful,” France’s para triathlon champion, Alexis Hanquinquant, said. “Paris is the most beautiful city in the world. I think we’re going to have some pretty exceptional Paralympic Games.”
Of the 22 Paralympic sports, only two do not have an Olympic equivalent — goalball and boccia. In goalball, teams of visually impaired or blind players take turns rolling a ball containing bells toward the opposing goal while the defending team’s players act as goalkeepers. In boccia, players throw or roll leather balls as close as they can to a small ball called a jack.
Compared to the previous edition of the Paralympics in Tokyo, 10 medal events have been added to give female athletes and those with high-support needs more opportunities.
The Paralympic flame was lit Saturday in Stoke Mandeville, a village northwest of London widely considered the birthplace of the Paralympic Games, and was to make its way via a torch relay under the English Channel to cities all over France before lighting the cauldron during the opening ceremony on Wednesday.
Anticipation has been building with Parisians returning from their summer vacations – the city almost felt empty at the beginning of the month with many away at the coast. For locals who missed the Olympic action, the Paralympics are a second chance to catch some of the excitement.
The athletes — Paralympians — will be the focus of attention starting Thursday in the first day of competition, when there will be medals to be won in para taekwondo, para table tennis, para swimming, and para cycling on the track.
As was the case for the Olympics, there will be medals up for grabs on each of the 11 days of competition. / AP