First Paralympic champions crowned as French fans roar on swimmer

France’s Ugo Didier competes in the men’s S9 400m freestyle swimming event during the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games at The Paris La Defense Arena in Nanterre, west of Paris on August 29, 2024.| Photo by Franck FIFE / AFP

PARIS, France — The Paris Paralympics crowned its first champions on Thursday, with swimmer Ugo Didier collecting the host nation’s first gold in euphoric scenes at La Defense Arena.

Didier, who was born with clubbed feet and has reduced use of his legs, won the 400m freestyle event in the S9 category after being roared home by French supporters in scenes reminiscent of those when Leon Marchand won four golds at the Olympics.

Didier, 22, timed 4min 12.55sec to finish a second and a half ahead of Simone Barlaam of Italy.

Brazilian swimmer Gabrielzinho won the third Paralympic title of his career. The 22-year-old, who has no arms or hands and his legs are atrophied, claimed the men’s 100m backstroke S2 title.

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Francesco Bocciardo and Carlotta Gilli launched much-fancied Italy’s search for multiple swimming golds as they both successfully defended their titles.

Medals were also on offer in track cycling, table tennis and taekwondo.

Paralympic powerhouses China dominated the last Games in Tokyo with 96 golds and cyclists Zhangyu Li and Xiaomei Wang opened their account in Paris.

The Chinese also won two golds in swimming to take an early lead in the medals table.

There was bitter disappointment though for Britain’s Kadeena Cox after her eight-year reign as C4-5 time trial champion ended when she crashed in the velodrome just metres after pushing off.

The action started too in archery, sitting volleyball, wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby, badminton, goalball — a form of football for the visually impaired but played with hands — and boccia, a version of bowls.

In men’s wheelchair basketball, reigning champions USA and the pretenders to their title, Great Britain, were quick to get their first wins.

The Americans had a hard-fought 66-56 victory against Spain while Britain, the bronze medallists three years ago in Tokyo, beat Germany 76-55.

Britain, who finished second in the medal standings behind the Chinese at the 2020 Paralympics, made a winning start to the defence of their men’s wheelchair rugby title as they beat world champions Australia 58-55.

People take pictures of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games cauldron attached to a balloon as it prepares to take off at the sunset from the Jardin des Tuileries, in Paris on August 29, 2024. |Photo by THIBAUD MORITZ / AFP

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‘Inclusion revolution’

French President Emmanuel Macron declared the Games open on Wednesday after a ceremony blessed with balmy weather — a far cry from the rain that poured all evening when the Olympics opened with a parade on the River Seine on July 26.

The 4,400 competitors from 168 delegations marched into the Place de la Concorde in central Paris as the sun set.

International Paralympic Committee (IPC) president Andrew Parsons said in a speech he hoped for an “inclusion revolution”.

“The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games will show persons with disabilities what they can achieve at the highest level,” Parsons said.

“The fact that these opportunities largely exist only in sport in the year 2024 is shocking. It is proof that we can and must do more to advance disability.”

Five French Paralympians, including 2020 gold medallists Alexis Hanquinquant and Nantenin Keita, then lit the already-iconic cauldron in the Tuileries Gardens before it rose into the sky.

Of the 35 venues for the highly successful Olympics, 18 will be used for the Paralympics including the ornate Grand Palais and the Stade de France.

Riding the wave of their Olympic team’s success, host nation France are aiming for a far stronger showing than the 11 golds they won in 2021, which placed them 14th in the medals table.

On Friday, giant Iranian sitting volleyball legend Morteza Mehrzad, who stands 8ft 1in (2.46m) tall, starts his bid for another gold medal as his nation faces Ukraine in the preliminary round. Iran have won three of the last four titles.