The Paralympic Games are set to open today.
Around 4 400 athletes with disabilities, permanent injuries or impairments prepare to compete for 549 medals across 22 sports over 11 days.
The French capital, fresh from hosting the Olympics, once again provides the backdrop for what promises to be a remarkable spectacle.
Many of the same venues used during the Olympics will now host Paralympic competitions.
Namibia will be proudly represented by a team consisting of five athletes, six guides and a 12-member management team, including three coaches.
The athletes competing are Lahja Ishitile, Ananias Shikongo, Johannes Nambala, Chris Kinda and Petrus Karuli.
They will be supported by their guides, Even Tjiuiu, Sem Shimanda, Onesmus Nekundi, Sydney Kamuuaruma, Hatago Murere and Kelvin Goagoseb.
The coaching team includes Letu Hamhola, T’Neil Young and Belinda Oberholster.
The management team is led by team manager Agnes Hausiku and team administrator Suzette Guims.
Also included are the president and secretary general of the Namibia National Paralympic Committee (NNPC), Johannes Litwayi and Michael Hamukwaya, respectively.
They are joined by physiotherapist Ruan Mocke, medic Simon O’Brien, attaché Tangi Le Guennec, journalist Hesron Kapanga and Namibia Sport Commission chief administrator Freddy Mwiya, who is accompanying the team as the NNPC’s guest.
The competition schedule for Namibia is packed, with Ishitile and her guide, Shimanda, kicking off the action on Friday in the T11 400-metre (m) round one race.
Karuli will also be in action on the same day in the T37 100m race.
If Ishitile advances, she will compete in the 400m semi-final later that evening.
On Saturday, Shikongo and his guide, Nekundi, will take on the T11 400m round one, while Kinda, with his guide Goagoseb, will compete in the T11 400m round one.
Should they progress, the semi-finals will take place in the evening.
Day three will feature Nambala in the T13 100m round one race.
Day four will see Ishitile and Shimanda return to the track for the T11 400m semi-final, scheduled for the afternoon.
On day five, Karuli will compete in the 400m round one.
Day six will be an action-packed day, with Shikongo and his guide, Tjiuju, as well as Kinda and Goagoseb, competing in the 100m round one.
Nambala will also compete in the T11 100m round one, with the finals set for the evening.
Ishitile and her guide ,Kamuuaruma, will be back in action on day seven in the T11 200m round one, with the semi-final slated for day eight.
Karuli will also compete on day eight in the T37 200m round one.