A SWANSONG FOR some, but bright beginnings for others. The circle of life, and sport, is a central theme to the 2024 Paralympic Games for Ireland.
Ellen Keane is among those bidding adieu in Paris, as the next generation take the torch and help deliver the eight to ten medals that has been set as the target for this 35-strong Team Ireland.
This is Keane’s fifth and final Games, having made her debut aged 13 at Beijing 2008. She’s out to defend her SB8 100m Breaststroke gold medal from Tokyo on Friday, but will face huge competition as she looks to finish on the highest of highs. The 29-year-old Dubliner is due to swim again in the S9 100m Backstroke next Tuesday, which is likely to prove an emotional retirement race.
At the other end of her career is Róisín Ní Riain. The 19-year-old Limerick star is a hot prospect, having built valuable experience in Tokyo as she blazed a medal trail thereafter. Whisper it, but it’s hoped she will get Ireland’s podium charge underway on opening night at La Defénse Arena on Thursday.
Younger again is Derry’s Dearbhaile Brady, whose focus is firmly on Paris having sat her GCSEs earlier this summer. The 17-year-old, who already has a European bronze medal on her CV, gets her Games underway on Thursday as well, as does the woman she describes as her inspiration, 22-year-old Nicole Turner.
Now that the dust has settled on a hugely successful Olympics, it’s time for round two: the main event after the warm-up act, as those in Para circles quip. The opening ceremony takes place at the historic Place de la Concorde this evening, signalling the start of 10 days of action, with a total of 23 disciplines on offer for some 4,400 global athletes with physical, vision, and intellectual impairments.
Barry McClements and Deaton Registe complete Ireland’s swimming squad, one of the nine sports the country will compete across, along with athletics, cycling, table tennis, rowing, triathlon, powerlifting, archery and equestrian.
Cycling is the biggest Irish team, with Katie-George Dunlevy and Eve McCrystal among the six athletes and 10 pilots.
They won three gold medals and two silvers between Rio and Tokyo and are six-time world champions, but like for Keane, the end is nigh. Pilot McCrystal has signalled that this will be her final Games, and while Dunlevy insists she isn’t looking beyond Paris, the 42-year-old has endured a challenging year with injury.
The pair will renew their iconic partnership on the track, but Dunlevy will be piloted by Linda Kelly on the road. Josephine Healion will spearhead Ireland’s other women’s tandem, teaming up with McCrystal on the road and Kelly in the velodrome. Ronan Grimes and Richael Timothy are other cyclists to keep an eye on.
Orla Comerford is the big athletics hope. The T13 100m sprinter has been in fantastic form and could light up the Stade de France next week.
Ireland has a rich history of success on the track, owing to Jason Smyth in particular, but others must take the mantel from the fastest man in Paralympics history, who retired last year.
That said, the standards are constantly rising across the board. There’s 0.15 of a second between the top five in Comerford’s event. Take the F40 shot put as another example, where Mary Fitzgerald will fly the flag — 7.48m secured the silver medal in Tokyo, but was the entry mark on this occasion. Or watch Britney Arendse in the up to 79kg power lifting on the final day — a lift of 141kg took gold in Tokyo, but the highest-ranked qualifier is now 153kg. Arendse’s PB has shot up to 128kg, and she has podium aspirations.
Irish athletes return to the biggest stage in rowing and triathlon for the first time since London 2012 and Rio 2016 respectively. Katie O’Brien and Tiarnán O’Donnell are set for their Paralympic debut in the PR2 Mixed Double Sculls, while Derry twins Chloe and Judith McComb will swim, bike and run. Cassie Cava — formerly of GB — is another triathlon prospect. They’re among 12 athlete debutants, and 24 women, on the team.
Michael Murphy — aboard Clever Boy — will head up the equestrian contingent in Chateau de Versailles, while Colin Judge and Kerrie Leonard are Ireland’s sole representatives in table tennis and archery.
Leonard is among the first athletes in action tomorrow at the spectacular Esplanade des Invalides, while Judge faces into straight knockout from Sunday.
First, he will carry the flag with Orla Comerford up the Avenue des Champs-Elysee this evening.
65,000 spectators are expected to watch on along the route as the opening ceremony takes place outside a stadium for the first time, like the Olympics.
Over two million tickets have been sold in all, with the people of Paris embracing the Games, while back home, RTÉ will broadcast a record 104 hours of TV coverage.
As Paralympics Ireland CEO Stephen McNamara told The 42 last week, there’s a balance to be struck between visibility and high performance. And as the high-profile campaign went, these athletes are “not taking part”; they’re competing.
Internationally, there are some superstars. American teenage amputee sprinter/high jumper Ezra Frech has been in the spotlight; London 2012 home hero Jonnie Peacock is on the comeback trail; and Hunter Woodhall will be hoping to follow in the footsteps of his wife, Tara Davis-Woodhall, who won long jump gold at the Olympics.
China have sent a strong squad, having dominated the medals table in Tokyo with 96 goals, while Team GB, USA and hosts France are other heavyweights.
“Hopefully along the way, we’ll sneak the odd 10 medals or so,” McNamara said before Team Ireland flew out.
That’s the currency, but it’s about so much more.
Let the Games begin. Bonne chance.
