The Brazilian delegation thrilled the audience present at the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games. The ceremony, which by first time it happened outside a stadium and began at 3:00 PM (Brasília time) this Wednesday, the 28th, took the historic Champs-Élysées avenue to the iconic Place de la Concorde, in the heart of the French capital.
Brazil was the 21st country to enter the approximately 2.5 km route prepared for the athletes' parade. Led by flag bearers Gabriel Araújo, from swimming, and Beth Gomes, from athletics, the Brazilian athletes showed excitement throughout the entire route.
Athlete from the country called up for this mission with the most Paralympic Games appearances, the swimmer from Ceará Edenia Garcia, 37, from the S3 class (physical-motor limitation), stated that she fulfilled a dream by entering the Champs-Élysées, which underwent a “repaving” process to be more accessible to wheelchair users.
“We work very hard to be here. It is the realization of a dream. The Paralympic cycle is made up of several acts, and the Games are the final act. I am emotional because we are leaving a mark in the history of Brazil and the Paralympic Movement. Everything is so beautiful,” evaluated the athlete, who was born with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, also known as peroneal muscular atrophy.
One of Brazil's flag bearers, the swimmer from Minas Gerais Gabriel Araújo, 22, it's also one of the 14 athletes from the country who can already compete for a medal this Thursday, the 29th. At 4:59 AM (Brasília time), he will swim in the S2 class (physical-motor disability) 100m backstroke preliminaries and, if he advances, he will swim in the final at 6:00 PM. In this event, he won the silver medal at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, but he is the reigning two-time world champion.
“I am very happy and honored. It is a unique moment and a very great emotion. My coach [Fábio Antunes] always thinks ahead. We always anticipate situations, and it was already in my planning to participate in the opening ceremony, regardless of whether I was swimming the next day or not. And an opportunity like this cannot be refused. It is a dream to be living all of this,” said Gabriel, who was born with phocomelia, a condition that prevents the development of arms and legs.
“So much emotion in being able to represent the entire Brazilian nation, enter the most famous avenue in the world, and open the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. I even pinched myself to understand if it was really true. It is a gift from God to know that our work is paying off. It is every athlete's dream to be here. Never stop dreaming, because your dreams can come true, she added Beth Gomes, 59, who will compete in the shot put and discus throw events in the F53 class (wheelchair users). She was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1993, when she was a conventional volleyball player.
The Brazilian uniform at the opening ceremony it consisted of a bucket hat, popularly known as a fisherman's hat, reversible in green and yellow; a blue jacket, a white t-shirt, and navy blue trousers or shorts. All of these items are by ASICS and were designed with accessibility in mind, as was the Havaianas flip-flops also worn by the athletes during the ceremony.
O Brazil will be represented in Paris by 280 athletes, with 255 having a disability, across 20 sports at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, marking the first time the city hosts the event. This is the largest Brazilian delegation ever announced for an edition of the Games held outside of Brazil.
Previously, the largest national team for an overseas competition was 259 total athletes called up in Tokyo 2020. Meanwhile, the country's record for participants was at the Rio 2016 Games, an occasion when Brazil hosted the mega-event and had 278 athletes with disabilities across all 22 sports already automatically qualified. The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games will be broadcast live on sportv2 and on YouTube channel of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC)
SOURCE: Brazilian Paralympic Committee
