PARIS:
French President Emmanuel Macron officially opened the Paralympic Games on Wednesday during a spectacular ceremony that celebrated athletes amid enthusiastic spectators and volunteers on a warm summer evening. The event, held at the Champs-Elysees and Place de la Concorde, marked the first time a Paralympic opening ceremony took place outside a stadium.
Despite the presence of around 15,000 law enforcement officers to ensure security, the evening maintained a relaxed and joyful atmosphere as the sun set over Paris.
Tony Estanguet, president of Paris 2024, welcomed the athletes with a message filled with symbolic meaning: “Dear athletes, welcome to the country of love and revolution. Tonight, there will be no Storming of the Bastille, no guillotine. Tonight, the most beautiful revolution begins – the paralympic revolution,” he declared, calling it a “sweet revolution” that would deeply transform society.
The live show began at the foot of the Place de la Concorde’s obelisk, with a piano performance by Canadian musician Chilly Gonzales. Artists with disabilities kicked off a countdown before French singer Christine and the Queens performed a pop version of Edith Piaf’s famous song ‘Je ne regrette rien’. Directed by Swedish choreographer Alexander Ekman, the ceremony featured 500 artists and was titled “Paradox, from discord to concord”, alluding to the location of the event. The sold-out spectacle concluded in front of over 50,000 attendees.
The athletes’ parade, involving 168 delegations, started from the base of the Champs-Elysees and proceeded in a festive atmosphere as volunteers cheered and danced. When the French delegation closed the parade, Yann Tiersen’s ‘Amelie’ theme played, followed by chants of ‘Allez Les Bleus’, with the illuminated Eiffel Tower providing a stunning backdrop.
Last month’s Olympic opening ceremony took place in rainy weather along the Seine but was well-received, despite some controversy over a display that appeared to parody da Vinci’s ‘The Last Supper’.
At the Paralympic ceremony, the flag was carried by Briton John McFall, who won a bronze medal in the 100 metres at the 2008 Beijing Paralympics and later became the first person with a physical disability to be cleared for future missions by the European Space Agency.
Following a torch relay through the Jardin des Tuileries, the Paralympic cauldron was relit near the Louvre Museum by five French Paralympic athletes, including Alexis Hanquinquant and Nantenin Keita.
The night ended with fireworks and another performance by Christine and the Queens, this time covering Patrick Hernandez’s 1978 hit ‘Born to Be Alive’. Serge Gainsbourg’s ‘Je t’aime moi non plus’ echoed through Place de la Concorde as the ceremony drew to a close.
