Paralympics begin with high hopes

Performers take part in the opening ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo yesterday. Tokyo’s Paralympic Games opened with athletes hoping to shatter stereotypes and world records despite a year-long pandemic delay and the spectre of a new wave of virus cases in Japan. As the Games began, Japan’s efforts to improve accessibility and inclusion are in the spotlight, with many arguing there is still plenty of work to do. Some 4,400 athletes with impairments will compete in Tokyo at the world’s biggest parasports tournament. It’s a place for sporting history, but also an event organisers say can change attitudes towards people with disabilities. PHOTO: AFP