Greece makes entry at Paris Paralympics opening ceremony with a guide dog, pictures go viral

Add as a preferred source on Google

Team Greece caught the instant limelight at the Paris Paralympics 2024 opening ceremony in the French capital as the flag bearers made a triumphant entrance along with a guide dog and the nation’s 37 athletes. Their entrance pictures with a 'paw’ immediately went viral on social media.

It’s important to note that service dogs are trained to assist Paralympic athletes with a variety of impairments and unique needs. They usually guide athletes who are blind, alert deaf athletes to sounds, pull wheelchairs, and provide emotional support.

This tradition initially started off at the Beijing Paralympics in 2008. Two guide dogs named Lucky and Star were part of the opening ceremony in Beijing. While Lucky guided Ping Yali, China's first Paralympic gold medalist, Star followed Li Duan, a blind long jumper with the Chinese contingent.

It’s worth noting that this was the first time Paris hosted the Paralympic Games and for the same reason, the French capital came up with a grand opening ceremony ahead of the start of the Paralympic Games.

The Paralympics ceremony took place at the iconic Champs-Elysées and Place de la Concorde areas of Paris. A total of 184 delegations paraded down the Champs-Elysées.

Interestingly, for the first time in Paralympic history, the opening ceremony was held outside of a stadium, similar to the Paris Olympics 2024 opening ceremony that took place earlier in July. Notably, Greece has fielded a total of 37 athletes to compete across ten different sports in the French capital.

Who were the flag bearers for the Greece contingent at Paris Paralympics?

Manolis Stefanoudakis and Theodora Paschalidou, two Paralympian champions, were Greece’s flag bearers at the opening ceremony.

Manolis Stefanoudakis is a Paralympic javelin thrower. This will be the fourth Paralympic event for Manolis. Importantly, Stefanoudakis secured a bronze medal in the 2012 London Paralympics and also clinched a gold medal in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Paralympics. On the other hand, Theodora Paschalidou, the other flag-bearer, is a judo champion.

Greece has an impressive history at the Paralympic Games, with the nation accumulating a total of eleven medals in the Tokyo Paralympics in 2021.