Paralympic team of 516 members formed

The Olympic excitement may have cooled somewhat with the end of summer, but for Paralympians, the Games are only now heating up. China’s 516-member Paralympic delegation was officially formed in Beijing on Friday and is ready to compete with pride and integrity in Paris.

The Paralympic Games in Paris, which will take place from August 28 to September 8, will be hosted by the French capital for the first time.

This year, 22 sports and 549 events will be held at the Games, 10 more than at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo.

More than 4,400 athletes from over 160 countries and regions are expected to participate in the event. The Chinese delegation, which features a mix of youth and experience, will participate in 19 sports and 302 events, including archery, athletics, badminton, wheelchair basketball, fencing and tennis.

The Chinese delegation for the upcoming Paralympic Games in Paris, which is participating in the Summer Paralympics for the 11th time this year, consists of 126 male and 158 female athletes, supported by 232 coaches and staff members.

The athletes have an average age of 25.8 years, with 48-year-old table tennis player Xiong Guiyan as the oldest participant and 15-year-old swimmer Zhu Hui as the youngest. The team also includes 12 athletes from ethnic minority groups.

All athletes are amateurs, representing a variety of professions, ranging from workers and farmers to students, civil servants and freelancers. Of the participants, 189 athletes have previously competed at the Paralympics, while 95 are making their debut.

Cheng Kai, chairman of the Chinese Federation of Disabled, will lead the delegation. The delegation aims to push boundaries, pursue excellence and show both their spirit and sportsmanship.

Their mission also includes promoting international friendships, achieving success in both competition and cultural values, and deepening cultural exchange and cooperation with the host country.

China made its Paralympic debut in 1984 at the seventh edition of the Games in New York, sending a delegation of 24 athletes to compete in track and field, archery and table tennis. The team earned an impressive 24 medals, including two gold.

In the years that followed, China’s performance improved significantly. At the 2008 Beijing Paralympics, the country dominated the Games, winning 89 gold, 70 silver and 52 bronze medals — a total of 211 medals — topping both the gold and overall medal tables.

In 2021, at the 16th Summer Paralympic Games in Tokyo, Team China continued its winning streak. The team won 207 medals, 96 of which were gold. For the fifth time in a row, the team finished first in both gold medal count and overall standings.