2024 Paralympic Games

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'We are strong'

Three years ago, Zakia Khudadadi managed to flee the chaos in Afghanistan, and now she calls Paris home. As she prepares to compete in the Paralympics, the taekwondo star hopes to inspire women around the world.

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Local Paralympians compete in Paris

By Kate Murphy

San Diego native Courtney Ryan (right) and Team USA will compete for another medal in wheelchair basketball at the 2024 Paralympic Summer Games. Photo: Buda Mendes/Getty Images

Five San Diego athletes are competing for Team USA in the Paralympic Summer Games that kick off with the opening ceremony Wednesday in Paris. Why it matters: These elite local athletes give us another opportunity to witness historic wins and obsess over sports every day for the next two weeks. The intrigue: Some competitors are making their Paralympic debuts, while others return with their sights set on making it to the podium or capturing another medal. 🏀 Courtney Ryan will compete in wheelchair basketball after winning bronze with Team USA in 2020. 🏊🏼‍♂️ Noah Jaffe, from Carlsbad, will compete in para-swimming for the first time. 🎾 Dana Mathewson looks to medal in wheelchair tennis in her third Paralympics. 🏃🏻‍♂️Joel Gomez, from Encinitas, returns to run the 1,500m T13 event after winning gold at the U.S. Paralympics team trials in July. 🥏 Josh Cinnamo will look to earn another medal in shot put F46, the event he won bronze in at the 2020 Paralympics. Catch up quick: Thousands of international athletes with disabilities will compete in 22 sports at the Paralympics just weeks after the Olympics. The name stems from the Greek preposition para, which means beside or alongside, as these are "parallel" games to the Olympics. Fun facts: This is the first time that all 22 Paralympics sports will be broadcast live. The 2024 Team USA roster features an equal split of men and women — similar to the overall field at the 2024 Paris Olympics, which for the first time in history saw an equal number of men and women compete. What's next: Watch the events on NBC, USA Network, CNBC and Peacock, starting Thursday. Read more about the athletes

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Paralympic Spotlight: 🎾 Wheelchair tennis pro

By Kate Murphy

Dana Mathewson competes in The Championships Wimbledon 2024. Photo: Daniel Kopatsch/Getty Images

San Diego native Dana Mathewson is hoping the third time's the charm as she competes in wheelchair tennis this week. Driving the news: The seasoned pro earned a spot on Team USA nine months ago after winning gold at the 2023 Parapan American Games in Chile. The intrigue: Mathewson, 33, is the top-ranked American woman in wheelchair tennis. She became the first American woman to win a Grand Slam title, teaming with Yui Kamiji of Japan to win the Wimbledon ladies' doubles competition in 2022. The big picture: Competing on major tours gives wheelchair tennis players exposure and an opportunity for prize money that enables them to be full-time professional athletes — unlike many other Paralympic sports — Mathewson told Axios. They take the court the second week of the pro tour stops and are so integrated that she's shared locker rooms with Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka, she said. How it works: The rules, playing surfaces and equipment are the same, except the ball can bounce twice before the player hits it back. Flashback: Mathewson, who grew up in University City, contracted a rare autoimmune disease called transverse myelitis that left her paralyzed from the waist down when she was 10 years old. She learned to played recreational wheelchair tennis at Barnes Tennis Center in Point Loma, where she also won her first major junior girls title. Zoom in: Mathewson pursued a pro career to qualify for the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games as one of the top 24 players in the world. "Seeing that was possible… seeing I could compete... that made me realize I want to do this," Mathewson said. Keep reading

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Paralympic social media accounts bypass traditional media with edgy take

PARIS (AP) — The message is clear: Paralympians are not participating. They are competing.

https://apnews.com/article/paralympics-social-media-humor-paris-2024-6ee2ed68a10114dcd7fb6e2f124e3a54?

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🥇 Paralympic Games open

The Canadian delegation parades at the Paralympic Games opening ceremony today in Paris. Photo: Franck Fife/AFP via Getty Images The Paralympic Games kicked off today in Paris, with the first outdoor opening ceremony in the Games' history. 4,400 athletes, representing 168 countries, will compete in this year's Games. 📺 How to watch: For the first time, all 22 sports will be broadcast or streamed live. The Peacock app will reprise its role as NBCUniversal's Olympics hub, with more than 1,500 hours of Paralympic coverage. Some events will also air on NBC, USA Network and CNBC. See the schedule.

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📸 1,000 words

Photo: AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti Chinese swimmer Yuan Weiyi jumps into the pool Tuesday during a training session ahead of the Paralympics, which opened in Paris yesterday. Photos from Opening Ceremony ... Full schedule ... How to watch ... By the numbers.

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🥇 PARIS 2024

THE BEST VIEW IN SPORTS IS BACK   The stunning Eiffel Tower Stadium that hosted beach volleyball during the Olympics will now host blind soccer during the Paralympics. ‌ Blind soccer, explained: Teams are made up of four outfield players, who must be completely blind, and one goalkeeper, who must be sighted or partially sighted and can help give cues. To ensure fair competition, all outfield players wear eyeshades. ‌ How do they locate the ball? Balls have sewn-in rattles that make noise, even with the slightest movement. For this reason, spectators are asked to stay silent during play.

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📸 1 for the road

Photo: Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images French athletes Ksenia Chasteau and Pauline Deroulede compete in wheelchair tennis women's doubles today at the Paralympic Games in Paris.

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Paralympics fans learn when to be silent and when to make noise at sports for the visually impaired

PARIS (AP) — A soft voice from the loudspeaker reminds the restless crowd: “Shhh. Shhh.”

https://apnews.com/article/paralympics-2024-paris-silence-blind-football-goalball-2ecaf2a27d840886cd6c5f822cc706c6?

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🥇 Pic du jour

Photo: Thibault Camus/AP American Ezra Frech broke a high jump world record for single-leg amputees above the knee to win his second Paralympic gold medal in two days. He also won the 100-meter sprint.

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Australian breaker Raygun says she felt ‘panic’ after public reaction to her Olympic performance

BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — For Australian breaker Rachael Gunn, first came her polarizing performance at the Olympics, followed by her panic when she was chased through the streets of Paris.

https://apnews.com/article/rachael-gunn-raygunn-breaker-australia-olympics-cf2ef90553623d11a405be00da16243b?

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Fashion is slowly embracing the needs of disabled people. It’s happening for some Paralympians, too

Three years ago, when Team Canada appeared at the opening ceremonies of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, the athletes were dressed in sleek white jeans. They may have looked good, but for some Paralympians on the team, they were a challenge.

https://apnews.com/article/paralympics-2024-uniforms-adaptive-fashion-levine-long-e61f2360c5102c663f7c3eef55172aaf?

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🥈Paralympians bring home hardware

By Kate Murphy

Carlsbad's Noah Jaffe swims for Team USA at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris. Photo: Ian MacNicol/Getty Images

Two athletes from San Diego County came home with medals from the 2024 Paris Paralympics. State of play: More than two dozen California athletes competed in the Games, which ended with the closing ceremony on Sunday, earning 10 medals for Team USA. Several competitors hailed from the San Diego area. Zoom in: Courtney Ryan of San Diego won a silver medal in wheelchair basketball in her second Paralympic Games after Team USA lost to the Netherlands, 63-49, in the final. Swimmer Noah Jaffe of Carlsbad earned two medals in his Paralympic debut, winning silver in the men's 100-meter freestyle S8 — just .02 seconds from gold — and bronze in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay. The intrigue: Joel Gomez of Encinitas broke the Americas record while racing in the Paralympic final of the 1,500-meter T13. He placed seventh overall for Team USA. The big picture

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Adventist Church Participates in Faith Outreach During Paris 2024 Paralympic Games

As the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games concluded, the importance of spiritual support for athletes was highlighted. As in previous Olympic Games, chaplaincy played a crucial role in supporting athletes from around the world, allowing them to draw strength and comfort from their faith.

https://adventist.news/news/adventist-church-participates-in-faith-outreach-during-paris-2024-paralympic-games