A Parisian summer of love and sport

The Paris 2024 Games came to a close like they started, in the rain, but amidst a festive atmosphere with an electro-party at the Stade de France to conclude the Paralympics.

Some 24 French DJs, including electronic music pioneer Jean-Michel Jarre as well as Cassius, played in the final part of the event.

Earlier, the 169 delegations paraded to the tunes of French classics which got the spectators singing along.

Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo handed the Paralympics flag to International Paralympic Committee president Andrew Parsons, who then presented it to the mayor of Los Angeles, Karen Bass — the first Black woman mayor to receive the Paralympics flag during the closing ceremony. The American national anthem was performed by Ali Stroker.

“Nobody wants these Games to come to an end,” Paris 2024 president Tony Estanguet said as Paris passes the baton to Los Angeles for the next Summer Games.

“We beat a lot of records so tonight let’s beat another one. I’m asking you to give the para athletes the longest, loudest, craziest ovation they ever received,” he added to deafening cheers from the 64,000 spectators, in sharp contrast to boos from the crowd when French President Emmanuel Macron appeared.

Estanguet also urged the spectators and viewers not to forget “this summer when France was happy.”

The Olympic cauldron, which was supposed to be lifted up in the sky in a hot-air balloon one last time from the Jardin des Tuileries near the Louvre Museum, was grounded due to the rain, before the flame was put out, the only sad note of the night.

On to LA 2028

Paris raised the game for the Paralympics, with more than 4,000 athletes as well as 2.4 million tickets sold, which was second only to the London Games of 2012. Now the challenge for the US organisers is to top it with another breakout moment for para sports. “We want to conquer America,” said Craig Spence, a spokesman for the International Paralympic Committee.

Retired Army Lt. Gen. Reynold Hoover, CEO of the organising committee for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and Paralympics, is confident the Paralympics can do just that. “We don’t have the Eiffel Tower, we don’t have the Grand Palais, but we’ve got the Coliseum and we’ve got the Rose Bowl and we’ve got SoFi (Stadium), and all these tremendous state-of-the-art venues,” he said.

A record combined total of up to 15,000 athletes are expected to compete at the 2028 Olympics and Paralympics.