100 days to go: Top things to know about Paralympic Games Paris 2024
The countdown is on!
With just 100 days to go until the Paralympic Games Paris 2024, we take a look at the top things to know about the Games ahead of the Opening Ceremony on 28 August.
Around 4,400 Para athletes from around the world will gather to compete in 549 medal events across 22 sports over 11 days of competition, in front of ecstatic fans.
All the Paralympic events will be held in and around Paris, including the suburbs of Saint-Denis and Versailles, and Vaires-sur-Marne, just outside the city, making it easy for spectators to travel between venues in the most iconic of locations in France's capital.
So what are the main things not-to-be-missed at Paralympic Games Paris 2024?
1. Alongside London, Paris is the only city to have hosted three Summer Olympic Games, however the 2024 edition will be the first time France has held the Summer Paralympic Games! The nation hosted the Winter Paralympic Games in 1992 in Albertville.
2. Paris 2024 instigated Paralympic Day, with the inaugural edition held on 8 October 2022. More than 40,000 people enjoyed sport demonstrations including a dramatic long jump contest in which athletes ran along an elevated track with cheering spectators inches away on either side.
3. Shortly after the Olympic flame is extinguished in Paris, another flame will be lit in Stoke Mandeville; the UK location where the Paralympic Games originated. On 25 August, 24 British athletes will run halfway through the Channel Tunnel to start the Paralympic Torch Relay and will be met halfway by 24 French athletes who will then carry the Paralympic flame to home soil.
4. Half of the 2.8 million tickets cost €25 or less and 500,000 will cost €15 each. Affordable tickets also include a Discovery Pass (or Pass Découverte) for €24, in which fans can access several Para sports sessions on the same day.
5. A record number of National Paralympic Committees (NPC) are expected to participate, resulting in increased diversity, improved gender parity and stronger talent depth.
6. The Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024 will share the same logo for the first time. The emblem features a gold medal, a flame, and Marianne – a symbol of the revolution and France as a nation.
7. The Paralympic Phryge shows a mascot with a disability for the first time, courtesy of a running blade. Both the Olympic and Paralympic Phryges are based on an item of clothing representative of freedom for France.
8. Thomas Jolly, the artistic director of the four opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024, is renowned for breaking norms. A specialist in performing arts and creating a strong bond with the audience is perfect for the return of fans!
9. In an initiative by the Paris 2024 Organising Committee to increase Para sport participation, accessibility experts have been visiting sports clubs around the country to show staff how to welcome people with disabilities.
10. Sporting excellence will combine with iconic French venues at Paris 2024: from the Chateau de Versailles for the Para equestrian events to the Grand Palais for wheelchair fencing, and Para taekwondo competitions to Les Invalides for Para archery.
11. The Paralympic Games Paris 2024 starts with a bang on the very first day on 28 August with no fewer than 11 of the 22 sports being contested on day one. Get ready!
12. All Para sports will be broadcast live for the first time in history with 300 hours of coverage set to be televised.
13. Gender parity takes another step forwards as the Paris 2024 programme will feature a record 236 medal events for women and at least 1,859 slots for female athletes - the most ever in Paralympic Games history.
14. Who will be the breakout superstars at Paris 2024? British swimmer and quadruple amputee Ellie Challis who has won nine world medals including three gold since claiming silver in the 50m backstroke S3 at Tokyo 2020 could certainly be in the mix.
15. Returning stars are also eyeing Paris success, with the likes of two-time Paralympic wheelchair fencing champion and influencer Bebe Vio looking to compete - although hopefully the Italian's 1.3 million Instagram followers won't all try to get into the venue at once!
16. The Paralympic medals for Paris 2024 feature an embedded original piece of iron from the Eiffel Tower, while on the reverse, a stamp of the Olympic Games in braille honours the French inventor of the system, Louis Braille.
17. The Eiffel Tower will also provide the backdrop for the blind football matches at Paris 2024. Brazil have never lost a Paralympic tournament but the home nation and European Champions are training hard to upset the odds in front of the most iconic of French locations.
18. Keep an eye on India. From one Paralympic medal at London 2012 to four at Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020 saw a splurge of gongs with 19, including five gold. What can they do in Paris?
19. Roland-Garros, the iconic venue for the French Open, will host the wheelchair tennis events and sitting volleyball at the Paralympic Games.
20. The Paris 2024 Mass Participation Marathon invites amateur athletes to compete in a more accessible 10km race, with the route taking in a number of iconic places and monuments in the heart of the city.
For more information on Paralympic Games Paris 2024, see here.