British Paralympians Helene Raynsford and Gregor Ewan recently lit the Paralympic flame in Stoke Mandeville, a village considered the birthplace of the Paralympic Games. The flame will now travel to France for a four-day relay before arriving in Paris for the opening ceremony of the 17th edition of the Paralympics.
The lighting ceremony of the Paralympic Heritage Flame took place in Buckinghamshire, where the Stoke Mandeville Games were first held in 1948 for wheelchair athletes who had sustained spinal injuries during World War II. The event was the brainchild of neurosurgeon Ludwig Guttmann, who used competition as motivation for patients with spinal injuries.
Paris 2024 organising committee president Tony Estanguet expressed pride and excitement at hosting the first Paralympic Games in France. The Paralympic flame, similar to its Olympic counterpart, will cross the Channel Tunnel during its relay to mark the start of the Paralympic journey.
A group of 24 British athletes will make the underwater journey through the tunnel, handing off the flame to 24 French athletes in Calais. The flame will then be used to light 12 torches symbolizing the 11 days of competition and the opening ceremony.
The Paralympic flame, attached to a hot-air balloon, will fly over Paris each evening during the Paralympics. This unique cauldron is the first in Olympic history to use water and electric light instead of fossil fuels. Its flight over the Tuileries gardens will serve as a symbol of inclusion and awareness of living with disabilities.
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