Sixteen days after Tokyo bid sayonara to the Olympics, the XVI Summer Paralympics opened with a colorful message of inclusion and empowerment.
Emperor Naruhito formally declared the Games open in between an artistic performance revolving around the story of the Little One-Winged Plane, which was initially hesitant of taking flight.
This unique aircraft found out throughout the three-hour-long ceremony that not every aircraft is created equal. But through their own uniqueness, they were able to still fly.
Eventually, the Little One-Winged Plane through the power of encouragement and the three-colored Winds of Change (reflecting the Agitos, the symbol of the Paralympic Movement) — represented by the music and dances — was able to carry on and finally reached the skies.
The powerful message was also echoed by International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons with the hope that through the power of sports and the would-be performances of the para-athletes, society will gain more inclusivity and that discrimination will find no place in the world.
“It’s your moment to show to the world your skill, your strength, your determination,” he emphasized.
The ceremony also focused on the #WeThe15 campaign, the biggest-ever human rights campaign to end the discrimination to the 15 percent of the world’s population — the persons with disabilities.
Photo from PSC
Parsons referred to the Paralympians as the “force of nature.” And further adding that, “You are the best of humanity and the only ones who can decide who and what you are.”
The competitions get underway starting on Wednesday.
Team Pilipinas, on the other hand, will open its campaign on Thursday. Gary Bejino takes the pool in swimming’s men’s 200-meter individual medley SM6 Heat 2 at the Tokyo Aquatics Center at 8:32 AM.
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