Paralympic Games opening ceremony starts the final chapter on a long summer of sport in Paris

PARIS (AP) — Just weeks after hosting the Olympics, Paris inaugurated the 2024 Paralympics on Wednesday with a nearly four-hour-long opening ceremony in the heart of the city.

Against the backdrop of a setting sun, thousands of athletes paraded down the famed Champs-Elysées avenue to Place de la Concorde in central Paris where French President Emmanuel Macron officially declared the Paralympic Games open.

About 50,000 people watched the ceremony in stands built around the iconic square, which is the biggest in Paris and is visible from afar because of its ancient Egyptian Obelisk. Accessibility for athletes in wheelchairs was facilitated with strips of asphalt laid along the avenue and placed over the square.

More than 4,000 athletes with physical, visual and intellectual impairments will compete in 22 sports from Thursday until Sept. 8. Organizers say more than 2 million of the 2.8 million tickets have been sold for the various Paralympic events.

The opening ceremony was held outside the confines of a stadium, just like when the Olympics opened in the city on July 26. Fighter planes flew overhead, leaving red-white-and blue vapors in the colors of the French national flag, before the delegations entered the square in alphabetical order.

Some delegations were huge — more than 250 athletes from Brazil — and some were tiny — less than a handful from Barbados and just three from Myanmar.

Ukraine’s delegation got a loud cheer and some of the crowd stood to applaud them.

Flag bearers Steve Serio and Nicky Nieves led the U.S. team’s delegation. The French arrived last and to roars from the crowd, which then sang along to popular French songs, including “Que Je T’aime” by late rocker Johnny Hallyday.

Throughout the show, directed by Thomas Jolly who also led the Olympic opening ceremony, singers, dancers and musicians with and without disabilities performed on stage together seamlessly, projecting a theme of inclusion and overcoming physical differences. Lucky Love, a French singer who lost his left arm at birth, was joined by performers in wheelchairs. Other acts featured dancers with crutches.

International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons said he hoped the Paris Paralympics would start an “inclusion revolution” beyond the field of sport.

“The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games will show what persons with disabilities can achieve at the highest level when the barriers to succeed are removed," he said in a speech. “The fact these opportunities largely exist only in sport in the year 2024 is shocking. It is proof we can and must do more to advance disability inclusion — whether on the field of play, in the classroom, concert hall or in the boardroom."

As the ceremony concluded, the Paralympic torch was carried into the area by former Olympic wheelchair tennis gold medalist Michaël Jérémiasz, who was surrounded on stage by dozens of torchbearers. Five French Paralympians lit the Olympic cauldron, which is designed to look like a hot air balloon and glowed gold-like in the night.

The Paralympic flag was raised high into the night sky and its emblem adorned the top of the Arc de Triomphe about 3 kilometers (2 miles) away.

Although Wednesday night’s show started at 8 p.m. local time, fans had gathered hours earlier under a scorching sun to get top spots along the way. As performers entertained the crowd on stage, volunteers danced alongside Paralympians as they waved their national flags and the sky gave off a postcard-perfect orange glow.

Tony Estanguet, the president of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, called Paralympians “immense champions who we have the honor of being with tonight.”

The first medals handed out on Thursday will be in taekwondo, table tennis, swimming and track cycling. Athletes are grouped by impairment levels to ensure as level a playing field as possible.

The closing ceremony will be held at Stade de France, the national stadium.

Associated Press Writer Tom Nouvian in Paris contributed to this report.

AP Paralympics: https://apnews.com/hub/paralympic-games

Artists perform during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, at La Concorde square in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, Pool)

Athletes Charles-Antoine Kouakou, Nantenin Keita, Fabien Lamirault, Alexis Hanquinquant and Elodie Lorandi look up after they lit the cauldron during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

South African dancer Musa Motha performs during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Artists perform during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, at La Concorde square in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, Pool)

The Obelisk of La Concorde plaza and the Eiffel Tower get lightenings during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, on La Concorde plaza in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla)

French artist Lucky Love sings during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Indonesia's delegation arrives during the Parade of Nations as part of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games Opening Ceremony at the Place de la Concorde in Paris, France, Wednesday Aug. 28, 2024. (Julien De Rosa/Pool Photo via AP)

The Obelisk of La Concorde plaza bears the colors of the French flag during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla)

Kenya's delegation arrives during the Parade of Nations as part of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games Opening Ceremony at the Place de la Concorde in Paris, France, Wednesday Aug. 28, 2024. (Julien De Rosa/Pool Photo via AP)

Indonesia's delegation arrives during the Parade of Nations as part of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games Opening Ceremony at the Place de la Concorde in Paris, France, Wednesday Aug. 28, 2024. (Julien De Rosa/Pool Photo via AP)

Artists perform during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, Pool)

Flagbearers Alexis Hanquinquant of France and Nantenin Keita of France lead their delegation during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (Gonzalo Fuentes/Pool Photo via AP)

Members of the Australian delegation parade during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, on Concorde plaza in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

French President Emmanuel Macron points towards the stage as he sits next to his wife Brigitte while they watch the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, in Paris, Wednesday Aug. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Felix Rodriguez-Scheyer)

Members of the Swiss delegation parade during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, Pool)

French President Emmanuel Macron, right, and IPC president Andrew Parson shake hands during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

The crowd attends the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, on the Concorde plaza in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla)

The crowd attends the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, on the Concorde plaza, with the Grand Palais in background, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla)

French President Emmanuel Macron, right, and IPC president Andrew Parson attend the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

Alpha jets form the Patrouille de France fly over the Concorde plaza during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

Flagbearers Hernan Barreto of Argentina and Coty Garrone of Argentina lead their contingent during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (Gonzalo Fuentes/Pool Photo via AP)

Artists perform during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (Gonzalo Fuentes/Pool Photo via AP)

Flagbearers Mpumelelo Mhlongo of South Africa and Kat Swanepoel of South Africa lead their contingent during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (Gonzalo Fuentes/Pool Photo via AP)

Artists perform during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (Gonzalo Fuentes/Pool Photo via AP)

The United States athletes parade during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

The Paralympic flag is raised during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla)

Members of the Japanese delegation parade during the Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Paralympics, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, on Concorde plaza in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

Artists perform with fireworks during the Paris 2024 Paralympic Opening Ceremony at the Place de la Concorde in Paris, France, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024. (Julien De Rosa/Pool Photo via AP)

Police officers gather in a street near the Eiffel Tower on the eve of the Paralympic Games opening ceremony, Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024 in Paris. (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla)

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — The Miami Dolphins will bring in another quarterback while starter Tua Tagovailoa deals with his latest concussion, and coach Mike McDaniel insisted Friday that the only thing that should matter to him — or anyone — is Tagovailoa's health.

For the short term at least, Skylar Thompson will be considered the Dolphins' starter while Tagovailoa is sidelined. Tagovailoa left Thursday night's 31-10 loss to Buffalo in the third quarter with the third known concussion of his NFL career, all of them coming in the last 24 months.

“The team and the organization are very confident in Skylar,” McDaniel said.

McDaniel said the team has not made any decision about whether to place Tagovailoa on injured reserve. Tagovailoa was at the team facility Friday, as expected and as McDaniel said would be the case, to start the process of being evaluated in earnest.

How long that process takes is one of the countless unknowns right now.

“The people that matter most, and their opinions, are Tua, the doctors and the experts,” McDaniel said.

McDaniel and Tagovailoa have expressed often over their time together that their relationship is close. And McDaniel tried to make clear multiple times Friday that his top priority is Tagovailoa's well-being — not when he plays again.

“All the science behind concussions tells you what we’ve learned is how delicate the time is right after an injury and how important it is that you don’t institute extra sources of anxiety,” McDaniel said. “So, from my vantage point, I feel it’s supremely important in understanding that, that I’m not giving off any sort of vibes.”

There are a slew of veteran quarterbacks available for the Dolphins to consider, including Jimmy Garoppolo and former Miami starter Ryan Tannehill. The Dolphins have not revealed any players who are under consideration, and — despite plenty of former players suggesting it may be time for Tagovailoa to consider his long-term health — McDaniel said it would be “so wrong” for him to even think about weighing in on whether the quarterback should play again.

“I wish people would for a second hear what I’m saying, that bringing up his future is not in the best interest of him,” McDaniel said. "So, I’m going to plead with everybody that does genuinely care — that should be the last thing on your mind.”

Concerns and opinions from around the football world were coming nonstop Friday, from former Alabama coach Nick Saban — Tagovailoa's college coach — urging the quarterback and his family to proceed with caution, to Las Vegas Raiders coach Antonio Pierce saying he would tell Tagovailoa to stop playing the game.

“I’ll be honest: I’d just tell him to retire," Pierce said.

All that seems certain: McDaniel doesn't envision Tagovailoa playing in Miami's next game at Seattle on Sept. 22.

Tagovailoa was hurt on a play where he collided into Bills defensive back Damar Hamlin. Tagovailoa, who was rushing successfully for a first down, initiated the contact by lowering his shoulder into Hamlin instead of sliding as many quarterbacks do on a scramble.

Players from both teams motioned that Tagovailoa was hurt after that play, and as he lay on the turf the quarterback exhibited some signs — certain arm movements, for example — typically associated with a traumatic brain injury. He remained down on the field for a couple of minutes, got to his feet and walked to the sideline after the play in the third quarter.

McDaniel gave his quarterback a kiss on the side of the head as he left the field Thursday. McDaniel revealed Friday that, in that moment, he was telling Tagovailoa to focus on what matters most — his health and his family.

“All I'm telling Tua is everyone is counting on you to be a dad and be a dad this weekend," McDaniel said. “And then we'll move from there.”

There are five steps, as mandated by the NFL concussion protocol, that Tagovailoa will have to clear before he can return to the field. That process can take days or even weeks.

Tagovailoa was 17 for 25 passing for 145 yards, with one touchdown and three interceptions — one of which was returned for a Buffalo score — when he got hurt. Thompson completed eight of 14 passes for 80 yards.

“We’re just evaluating the pros and cons for the different situations and getting through all those possibilities to do the best thing for the team,” McDaniel said, when revealing that the team had already decided to bring in another quarterback. "But as it stands today, I’m expecting that Skylar is the next man up.”

Thompson said he feels “fully equipped” to run the Dolphins' offense.

“What’s going to lie ahead, who knows, but man, I’m confident, though,” Thompson said after Thursday's game. “I feel like I’m ready for whatever’s to come. I’m going to prepare and work hard and do everything I can to lead this team and do my job.”

AP NFL: http://www.apnews.com/hub/NFL

Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel talks during a news conference following an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel talks to quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) as he leaves the game after suffering a concussion during the second half of an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) lies on the field after suffering a concussion during the second half of an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Dolphins will bring in another quarterback, while Tagovailoa deals with concussion

Dolphins will bring in another quarterback, while Tagovailoa deals with concussion