Brazil livens up Champs-Élysées at Paralympic Games opening

In a ceremony that valued accessibility, sporting excellence and the rights of people with disabilities to live on a planet that integrates and provides equal conditions for everyone in all areas of activity, the Paris Paralympic Games were officially opened this Wednesday, August 28, in France.

We work hard to be here. It’s a dream come true. The Paralympic cycle is made up of several events, having the Games as the final event. I’m thrilled because we are leaving a mark in Brazil’ history of Brazil and the Paralympic Movement. It’s all very beautiful.” — Edênia Garcia, paralympic swimmer

Just like the Olympic Games, the ceremony was held outdoors for the first time in the history of the mega-event, in the area between the historic Champs-Élysées Avenue and Place de la Concorde.

TORCH - The final stretch of the torch relay that officially opened the Games involved French and international Olympic and Paralympic athletes with different types of disabilities, all of whom were champions. Initially, the relay was accompanied by an artistic performance to the sound of Ravel's Bolero. At the end, the flame was lit by five athletes from the French team: Charles-Antoine Kouakou (athletics), Nantenin Keita (athletics), Fabien Lamirault (table tennis), Alexis Hanquinquant (triathlon) and Elodie Lorandi (swimming).

Starting this Thursday and running until September 8, more than 4,400 athletes from 184 nations will compete in 22 sports at the French capital. Brazil will be represented by 280 athletes in 20 sports, 274 of whom are currently members of the Bolsa Atleta program, a federal government sponsorship program. This is the largest Brazilian delegation ever announced for an edition of the Games outside Brazil.

Five French athletes with different disabilities lit the cauldron to officially open the Paralympic Games. Image: video frame

CELEBRATION - During the delegation parade, the Brazilian team excited the audience. Brazil was the 21^st country to enter the approximately 2.5km route prepared for the athletes' parade. Led by flag bearers Gabriel Araújo, from swimming and Beth Gomes, from athletics, the Brazilian athletes showed enthusiasm throughout the entire route.

An athlete from the country with the most participation in the Paralympic Games, the swimmer from Ceará, Edênia Garcia, 37, in the S3 class (physical-motor limitation), said that she had fulfilled a dream when she entered the Champs-Élysées. The French avenue underwent a “resurfacing” process to make it more accessible to wheelchair users.

“We work hard to be here. It is a dream come true. The Paralympic cycle is made up of several events and the Games are the final act. I am thrilled because we are leaving a mark in the history of Brazil and the Paralympic Movement. Everything is very beautiful,” said the athlete, who was born with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, also known as fibular muscular atrophy.

Party at Place de la Concorde at the end of the opening ceremony. Image: video frame

MEDALS - One of Brazil's flag bearers, the swimmer from Minas Gerais, Gabriel Araújo, 22, is one of the 14 athletes from the country who can compete for a medal this Thursday, 29. At 4:59 am (Brasília time), he will swim the heats of the 100m backstroke in the S2 class (physical-motor limitations). If he advances, he will compete in the final at 1 pm. At the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, He won the silver medal in this competition; nonetheless, he is the current two-time world champion.

“I am happy and honored. It is a unique moment and a great emotion. We always anticipate situations and I had already planned to participate in the opening, regardless of swimming the next day. It is a dream to be experiencing all this,” said Araújo, who was born with phocomelia, a disease that prevents the formation of arms and legs.

“It is so exciting to be able to represent the entire Brazilian nation, to enter the most famous avenue in the world and open the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. I had to pinch myself to realize it was really true,” added Beth Gomes, 59, who competes in the shot put and discus throw events in the F53 (wheelchair) class. She was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1993 when she was a regular volleyball player.

UNIFORM - The Brazilian uniform for the opening ceremony consisted of a bucket hat, popularly known as a fisherman's hat, double-sided in green and yellow; a blue jacket, a white T-shirt and navy blue pants or shorts. All items were made with accessibility in mind, as were the flip-flops also worn by the athletes during the ceremony.

ATHLETE GRANT - Of the 280 Brazilian athletes in Paris in 20 sports, 274 (97.8%) are part of the Federal Government's Athlete Grant [Bolsa Atleta], including the 37 in swimming. Of the six that are not currently part of the program, four were included in previous editions. The other two are guides who run alongside visually impaired athletes. The first Bolsa Atleta call in which guide athletes could be included was in December 2023, after the General Sports Law was approved.

MEDALS – Brazil has won 373 medals in Paralympic Games throughout 11 editions. These include 109 golds, 132 silvers and 132 bronzes. The three sports that have secured the most podiums are athletics (170 medals), swimming (125 medals – 40 golds, 39 silvers and 46 bronzes) and judo (25 medals – five golds, nine silvers and 11 bronzes).