[In Pictures] Indian athletes take part in Paris 2024 Paralympics Opening Ceremony

This year’s Paralympic Games officially started on Wednesday, August 28, with a grand Paris 2024 Paralympics opening ceremony at the iconic Champs-Elysees and Place de la Concorde in the heart of the French capital.

The Indian athletes were a part of the 4,400 para-athletes taking part in the grand event in Paris. In pictures shared on social media by the Indian embassy in France, the Indian athletes can be seen walking down the stage at La Concorde.

Sumit Antil and Bhagyashri Jadhav, who were India’s official flag bearers at the Paralympics Opening Ceremony, led the country’s para-athletes at the event.

India has sent 84 para-athletes to the Paris 2024 Paralympics – the country’s largest-ever contingent to any Paralympic Games. The para-athletes will take part in 12 sporting events in an attempt to better the country’s medal haul from the Tokyo 2020 Games, where they won 19 medals.

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Which contingents stole the spotlight at the Paris 2024 Paralympics Opening Ceremony?

Continuing the theme of the Paris 2024 Olympics, the Paralympic opening ceremony was much larger in size and ambition than other editions. 4,400 Paralympians from around the world marched down at the La Concorde square in the heart of Paris on Wednesday.

Other than the Indian contingent, there were many other contingent teams that stole the spotlight during the Paris 2024 Paralympics opening ceremony.

The crowd cheered most when the eight-member Refugee Paralympic delegation took the stage, led by Cameroonian refugee Donard Ndim Nyamjua. The French crowd also cheered the arrival of the Ukrainian and Palestinian contingents during the event.

Other notable contingents at the Paris 2024 Paralympics opening ceremony were that of China, which sent the largest team comprising 218 para-athletes. Interestingly, China topped the medal charts at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics.

Japan too sent a large contingent in Paris relative to their population. The island nation sent 181 para-athletes to the Paralympic Games, led by Tokyo 2020 participant An Nishida and Paralympic debutant Daiki Ishiyama.

With the grand Paris 2024 Paralympics opening ceremony concluded, the athletes will now focus on bringing their best performances to their respective events at the quadrennial tournament. The Paris 2024 Paralympics will take place between August 28 and September 8.