(C) ShareAmerica
This story was originally published by ShareAmerica and is unaltered.
. . . . . . . . . .
The 2024 Paris Paralympics in pictures [photo gallery] [1]
['Lauren Monsen']
Date: 2024-09-09 04:03:00+00:00
The 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris showcased the talents of 4,000 athletes from 170 countries. From August 28 through September 8, athletes competed in front of record-breaking audiences of millions of viewers worldwide, highlighting the power of sports to bring people together.
Enjoy this gallery and meet a few of the athletes who brought energy and excitement to the 2024 Paralympics.
Japan’s Saki Amuro, 31, dives during a game of goalball, a fast-paced team sport that spectators watch in silence so players, who are visually impaired, can track the sound of the ball, which has bells inside. Brazil defeated Japan 2-0 in the September 3 women’s quarterfinal game.
Competitors congratulate Gabriel Geraldo dos Santos Araújo (left), of Brazil, after his victory in a 100-meter backstroke event on August 29. Born with short legs and no arms, Araújo, 22, earned the nickname “rocket man” for his speed. In Paris, he twice broke a world record and won three gold medals.
Camila Muller, 29, of Brazil (left), wears a Wonder Woman mask while running alongside her guide in a women’s 1,500-meter track race on September 1. Muller is blind and took up competitive running at 19. “Athletics completely changed my life,” she told Olympics.com. “It boosted my self-esteem and self-confidence. My achievements go beyond medals, as I have made lots of friends, improved my quality of life and had unforgettable experiences.”
Born without arms, Sevilay Öztürk, 20, of Türkiye, never considered competitive swimming until she met a Paralympic swimmer who also did not have arms. She began swimming in 2010 and won a bronze medal at the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships in London. “I actually started swimming because I wanted to socialize,” Öztürk told the International Paralympic Committee. “I had a nice circle of friends after devoting myself to the sport.”
This in-camera, multiple exposure image captures Hakan Akkaya of Türkiye, left, and Matteo Betti of Italy squaring off during a September 4 men’s wheelchair fencing semifinal. Betti won a fencing silver medal that day.
Both Akkaya, 29, and Betti, a 38-year-old who appeared in his fifth Paralympics, say competing has enriched their lives. “Sport helps you solve problems and helps you face various obstacles in life,” Betti said on social media in 2021. “It helps you both physically and mentally.”
U.S. men’s wheelchair rugby co-captain Chuck Aoki advances the ball in a gold-medal match against Japan September 2. After the disappointing loss — Japan won 48-41 — Aoki said he is considering a return to the Paralympics in Los Angeles in 2028.
For Aoki, 33, it would be his fifth Paralympics. With three silver Paralympic medals and one bronze, he is the most decorated men’s wheelchair rugby player in U.S. history.
U.S. women’s long jumper Beatriz Hatz, 23, made her first Paralympic appearance during the Paris games and won bronze in her event. Hatz, who was born without a fibula in one leg, picked up track and field at the encouragement of a friend. Now she trains as much as she can.
She told Amplitude magazine her motto is: “When you are not on the track, someone else is. Work hard every day.”
Katie Pegg, 20, of Canada, who was born missing a bone in her forearm, competes in a shot put final September 4. When training for Paris, Pegg, a multi-sport athlete, lifted weights five days a week and practiced shot put at least four days a week.
“Shot put was one of the first sports I fell in love with,” Pegg, who attends Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, told Olympics.com. “This is where I’m supposed to be.”
[END]
---
[1] Url:
https://share.america.gov/2024-paris-paralympics-pictures-photo-gallery/
Published and (C) by ShareAmerica
Content appears here under this condition or license: Public Domain.
via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/shareamerica/
