The Paris Paralympics will kick off on Wednesday night with a spectacular opening ceremony that will see thousands of athletes parading through the city’s most iconic landmarks. An estimated 65,000 spectators are expected to line the streets as athletes from over 180 countries march along the famed Champs-Elysees, culminating at Place de la Concorde. This marks the first time in Paralympic history that the opening ceremony, scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. local time (6 p.m. in the UK), will be held outside of a traditional stadium setting.
Approximately 4,400 athletes will participate in the parade, with Paralympic champions Lucy Shuker and Terry Bywater chosen as flagbearers for ParalympicsGB. The ceremony will conclude at 10 p.m., setting the stage for the competitions, which begin the following day.
The Paris Paralympics will feature 22 of the 28 recognized Paralympic sports, with events spread across 18 venues over the course of two weeks. The Games will wrap up on September 8 with the closing ceremony.
The Paralympic flame, lit last Saturday by British Paralympians Helene Raynsford and Gregor Ewan in Stoke Mandeville—considered the birthplace of the Games—began its journey to Paris after traveling through the English Channel. The flame was carried in a four-day relay that spanned from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean, passing through the Pyrenees and the Alps. It will reach Paris on Wednesday, where it will ignite a unique Olympic cauldron attached to a hot-air balloon, which will soar over the French capital each evening during the 11 days of competition.
During the Tokyo Paralympics in 2020, Team GB secured 124 podium finishes, including 41 gold, 38 silver, and 45 bronze medals. For the Paris Games, UK Sport anticipates that ParalympicsGB will claim between 100 and 140 medals.
In total, 549 gold medals will be awarded during the Paris Paralympic Games.
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