Games open in Verona with calls for unity amid wars and athlete absences

VERONA (Agencies): With a sequence of rhythmic performances that celebrated uniqueness and participation, the opening ceremony of the Winter Paralympics on Friday brought on stage artists with disabilities, as athletes sat in a front row designed for wheelchairs. Verona’s Roman amphitheatre hosted the inaugural event of the 50th Paralympics less than two weeks after bidding goodbye to the Winter Olympics, against a dramatically altered global backdrop.  “Four years ago, I said I was horrified at what was happening in the world. Unfortunately, the situation has not improved,” International Paralympic Committee (IPC) President Andrew Parsons said in a speech. “In a world where some countries are better known by the names of their leaders, I prefer to know ​countries by the names of their athletes,” he added, before Italian President Sergio Mattarella declared the Games open. “Here, differences ⁠are not reasons for separation, but sources of strength,” Parsons said. The IPC’s decision in September to allow Russia and Belarus to compete under their full national symbols triggered boycotts of the athletes’ parade by some countries, although it had no marked impact on the ceremony.

The two countries’ delegations were met with more muted applause from the public, as was Israel’s, but at least one Russian flag appeared in the stands along with some sparse whistling. Meanwhile, Iran’s sole athlete deserted the Games, unable to travel safely due to the war sparked by U.S.-Israeli attacks in the last week. Dubbed “Life in Motion”, the ceremony featured a soulful rendition of the national anthem by rising Italian-Malian singer Mimi Caruso and a performance by The Police founder Stewart Copeland with British drummer Cornel Hrisca-Munn, ​who was born without forearms. As the Paralympic cauldrons were lit simultaneously in Milan and Cortina, Italian wheelchair fencer Beatrice ‘Bebe’ Vio, a two-time Paralympic gold medallist, carried the flame inside ⁠Verona’s 2,000-year-old Arena. Pre-dating Rome’s Colosseum, the Arena is a symbol of the city where William Shakespeare set his “Romeo and Juliet” drama.

ABSENCES:

Volunteers carried flags and national signs for the 55 nations competing in what will be the largest Paralympic Winter Games in history, with athletes following the flagbearer in some cases – or waving from two large screens in videos pre-recorded by the national teams. Only 28 national Paralympic delegations attended the parade, the IPC said, adding that was mostly due to performance reasons, given the competition schedule. Six ⁠European countries had joined Ukraine in the boycott of Friday’s parade to show solidarity with Kyiv following Russia’s 2022 invasion, the IPC said. Brian McKee, father of three-time U.S. Paralympic gold medallist Kevin, said the Games were a version of the real world where people managed to get on. “This is the world, you know,” he said as he entered ⁠the Arena. “I was in Sochi in 2014 and Pyeongchang in 2018: everybody got along fantastic. It doesn’t matter where you’re from.” Running March 6-15, the Milano Cortina Paralympics will have a record 611 athletes competing in 79 medal events across six sports, including the debut of wheelchair curling mixed doubles and of ⁠five countries: El Salvador, Haiti, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Portugal. Pyeongchang 2018 held the previous record, with 564 athletes from 48 delegations.  As with last month’s Olympic Games, which won Italy international praise for its organisational achievements, the Paralympics will be held across multiple locations, with athletes competing in Milan and the Alpine resorts of Cortina d’Ampezzo and Val di Fiemme.