Two years until Paris 2024 Paralympics: IPC leader Andrew Parsons discusses the myriad challenges in a “changed world” along road to the Games

A record 549 medal events across 22 para sports will be contested in iconic, awe-inspiring locations in and around Paris as Paralympic athletes return to the world stage in late August and early September of 2024.

Les Invalides will be the setting for Para archery; the Champ de Mars, at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, for blind football, Para judo and wheelchair rugby; and the grounds of Château de Versailles for Para equestrian, and goalball at the Stade Pierre de Coubertin, just to highlight a few sporting venues.

A creative, out of the ordinary, open air, public opening ceremony at the Place del la Concorde, is also in the works.

With nearly two years go until the Paris 2024 Paralympics opening ceremony, on August 28, 2024, International Paralympics Committee (IPC) president Andrew Parsons highlights some of the exciting elements being planned as well as some of the myriad challenges potentially standing in the way.

Parsons was asked by Around the Rings what he recalls about two years to go until the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics and if there is any comparison between then and now as related to Paris 2024.

“It’s difficult to compare – the world has changed so much due to the pandemic, and also the situation with the war in Ukraine, so the world is different to say three or four years ago,” Parsons said in a phone interview with ATR on Friday morning.

“I think now what we have learned is to expect the unexpected and be prepared.

“With Paris 2024, we know that inflation is rising around the globe so this may have an effect on the Paris 2024 budget. With the experience that we now have, we can now support Paris 2024 to make the best decisions for the Games and the athletes if we need to cut costs, which normally happens.

“With the inflation rising, this may happen sooner than later.

“And in many nations COVID-19 is still a challenge, and now we have Monkeypox, which we don’t anticipate to be problem for the Games, but we need to keep our radar on all the time.”

Paris 2024 venues, Paralympic village and a revolutionary opening ceremony?

The 17th edition of the Summer Paralympic Games will be headed to France for the first time ever, August 28 to September 8, 2024. Previously, France has held one winter edition in Albertville and Tignes in 1992.

Parsons provided a positive update on the venues in and around the French capital, most of which will be also be utilized for the preceding Olympic Games.

“We are generally happy with the venues, there are always some minor changes along the way and we will integrate with the Olympics and that’s a concept of the Games to save costs,” Parsons said. “Sometimes, we use different venues, but we are very flexible to adapt.”

Parsons reveals a potential, outside the norm, open air opening ceremony, following somewhat in Paris 2024′s Olympic footsteps, in terms of their elaborate opening that will involve athletes being paraded in boats along the Seine River.

“For the opening ceremony, they have proposed something different which is to use the Place de la Concorde area of Paris, so outside of the stadium,” Parsons reveals.

“It’s a very interesting proposal, it’s aligned with their revolutionary approach to the Games in the general. At the same time, it’s a very complex idea, so we need more information and details about it if we are going to approve it,” he adds.

Parsons also recently visited the Olympic village site at L’Île-Saint-Denis, north of the Paris city center, an area known as one of the most crime-ridden in Europe.

“I visited the Village construction site, maybe a month ago,” Parsons said. “I’m impressed at where they are, even with the pandemic, construction has been underway.”

Tell us more Andrew, we cannot wait

The Brazilian Paralympics boss is eager to tease some major news to be revealed later this year. IPC chief brand and communications officer Craig Spence pulls back the reigns a bit.

“We will announce something in December with the potential big scale event launch of something next year,” Spence tells ATR.

“We want to move people from awareness, which was the goal for Tokyo, for people to take action, that is the idea,” Parsons notes.

Despite further attempts by ATR to get to the bottom of the well-kept secret, no such luck. Stay tuned!

Status of Russian and Belarusian athletes for Paralympics

Parsons also discussed the status of Russian and Belarusian athletes in the Paralympic movement and foreshadowing Paris 2024. He informs that an IPC General Assembly is scheduled in November to discuss, evaluate and potentially take further action in regards to consequences to be implemented due to the Russian aggression in Ukraine.

“In our role as an international federation for four summer sports, we are not accepting entries from Russian and Belarusian athletes in line with what we did in Beijing,” Parsons noted.

“That’s the current status and with the majority of Paralympic sports with other IF’s, it’s the same.

“We have a series of decisions to make with our membership and it will start in November,” he informs.

The Beatles said it best

Parsons succinctly summarized what needs to be focused upon and be accomplished over the final two years leading up until the 17th edition of the Summer Paralympics.

For inspiration, he has to look no further than the 1967 Beatles hit, written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney: “With a little help from my friends.”

“We keep saying that we have the best test event on earth which is called the Olympic Games,” Parsons said. “That’s a little controversial already, but our friends at the IOC like to hear that. That’s a good joke.”

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