Paris Paralympics kick off with dazzling opening ceremony

(Photo: X/Paris 2024)

The 2024 Paris Paralympics got underway with a magical four-hour-long opening ceremony that is being described as one of the best to date.

Thousands of athletes paraded down the famed Champs-Elysees avenue to Place de la Concorde in central Paris. 

The celebrations began at 8 p.m. local time (1800 GMT/UTC) with delegations from 168 countries entering the iconic square in alphabetical order.  

More than 4,000 athletes with physical, visual and intellectual impairments will compete in 22 sports from Thursday until September 8.

As many as 50,000 people cheered from stands built around the square. The mood in the square was one full of joy and exuberance.

The clear skies also added to the great atmosphere.

Some delegations were very big while others were smaller.

Some like the refugee team, which is the largest ever to date with eight athletes and one guide runner, and the Ukrainian team, saw crowds erupt into applause.

French President Emmanuel Macron told the ceremony he was proud to welcome Paralympians from all over the world.

Like the opening ceremony of the Olympics Games in July, the Paralympics opening ceremony also took outside of a stadium.

Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons used his speech to call for a more inclusive world.

"The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games will show persons with disabilities what they can achieve at the highest level," he said, before adding that it was important to do more to build an inclusive world. 

"That is why 225 years on from when Place de la Concorde was central to the French Revolution, I hope that Paris 2024 starts a Paralympic revolution — the inclusive revolution," he said.

The first medals handed out on Thursday will be in taekwondo, table tennis, swimming and track cycling.