MADRID, Spain.- On the afternoon of Wednesday, August 28, Paris once again became the epicenter of world sport to start the 17th edition of the Paralympic Games. The 168 participating delegations and the Refugee Paralympic Team marched down the iconic Champs-Élysées to the Place de la Concorde, in an open-air opening ceremony.
The event marks the start of 11 days of intense competition, which will run until September 8. Sixteen days after the closing of the OlympicsParis is hosting around 4,400 athletes competing in 22 sports. The French capital will witness 549 medal events, divided between 271 men’s events, 235 women’s events and 43 mixed events.
As in the Olympic Games, the organisers have replicated the formula of using iconic Paris venues for the competitions. These include five-a-side football for the blind at the Eiffel Tower Stadium, para-equestrian sport at the Palace of Versailles and wheelchair fencing at the Grand Palais. In addition, the cauldron in the shape of a hot air balloon has been maintained, as well as the mascot and the anthem that accompanied the Olympic Games.
Cuban delegation
During the opening ceremony the Cuban delegation was flagged by Paralympic champions Omara Durand and Robiel Yankiel Sol.
🇨🇺 La bandera cubana ondeó una vez más en #Paris2024
🎉La inauguración de los Juegos Paralímpicos de París 2024 se vio acompañada de las delegaciones que desfilaron por la Plaza de la Concordia, donde destacó la presencia de Cuba.#JuegosParalimpicos2024 pic.twitter.com/vmXjBKiS7F
— Cubavisión Internacional (@CVInternacional) August 28, 2024
Durand, Known as the world’s fastest Paralympic sprinter, she will compete in the 100, 200 and 400 metres in the T12 category. Sol, meanwhile, will seek to repeat her success in the long jump in the T46 category.
The Cuban delegation is made up of 21 athletes, 13 men and eight women who, like accurate Wilber Rodríguez Vera, will compete in eight sports: athletics (9), taekwondo (3), shooting (3), swimming (2), judo, weights, table tennis and archery, 1.
Members of the Cuban delegation
Athletics
- Ever René Castro – Javelin F41
- Felipa Hecheavarría – Long Jump T47
- Omara Durand – 100, 200 and 400 m T12
- Robiel Yankiel Sol – Long Jump T46
- Uliser Aguilera – Javelin F13
- Yamel Luis – 100m T44
- Noraivys de las Heras – Bullet F64
- Raciel González – 100 m T47
- Guillermo Varona – F46 Javelin
Taekwondo
- Lilisbet Rodriguez – 47 Kg
- Lidia Montes de Oca – +65 Kg
- Michel Suarez – 70 Kg
Sport shooting
- Alexander Reyna – SH1 Quick Pistol
- By Angelo Loriga – SH1 Fast Pistol
- Yenigladys Suárez – SH1 Fast Pistol
Swimming
- Yosjaniel Hernández – 50 and 400 m Freestyle S7
- Lorenzo Pérez Escalona – 100 and 400 m Freestyle S6
Judo
- Sheyla Hernandez – +70 KG
Weights
Table tennis
- Yunier Fernandez – MS1
Archery
Cuba’s history at the Paralympic Games began in Barcelona 1992 with just 10 athletes. It reached a peak in Beijing 2008 with 31 athletes. At the most recent Games in Tokyo 2020, Cuba was represented by 16 athletes.
