The final preparations are under way for the Paris Paralympic Games as organisers report tickets to watch the para dressage at Versailles have sold out (3-4 & 6-7 September).
Britain’s horses are set to travel via LeShuttle on Thursday (29 August) and will stop at a private yard in France then continue to Versailles on Friday (30 August) before competition starts on Tuesday.
As H&H went to print on Monday, the squad was in the final preparation camp hosted at the British Showjumping National Training Centre in Leicestershire.
British Equestrian para dressage performance manager Georgina Sharples told H&H the riders “can’t wait to ride down that centre line” at the “iconic venue”.
“Everybody’s watched the Olympics and some inspirational performances by our counterparts on the Olympic side, seen that stadium, and are just itching to be there,” she said.
Paris organisers reported last week (21 August) that ticket availability for the equestrian competitions was ”almost zero”. Para dressage tickets sold out in June, although some may pop up on the official resale platform.
More than 1.75 million tickets have been sold across all sports and ceremonies, including 700,000 since the start of the Paris Olympics in July. Most tickets (92%) have been snapped up by French buyers; the UK accounts for more than a quarter of the tickets sold internationally.
“We had those special stadiums in Tokyo that were empty, and this is going to be so different. It will add to it, lift it, it always does,” said Ms Sharples.
“People couldn’t go to Tokyo – they missed out on all of that. So it’s an amazing response to have so many owners, friends, family, wider teams, really wanting to get out there and be part of it.”
The British squad is comprised of Mari Durward-Akhurst (Athene Lindebjerg), Georgia Wilson (Sakura), Natasha Baker (Keystone Dawn Chorus) and Sophie Wells, who will now be competing with her direct reserve ride Egebjerggards Samoa. Sophie was initially selected with Don Cara M, but the change has been made owing to a “minor veterinary issue”.
Channel 4 is the UK broadcaster and plans to show more than 1,300 hours of live sport on Channel 4, More4 and streaming. Nearly 1,400 hours of live coverage from all 22 sports will be streamed on YouTube.
Penny Briscoe, chef de mission for ParalympicsGB at Paris 2024, said: “I am absolutely delighted to confirm that 215 athletes will compete [across the sports] for ParalympicsGB in Paris this summer.
“In the three years since the delayed Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, I have been privileged to witness outstanding performances by so many of our athletes at world and European level as they worked so hard to secure qualification for Paris 2024.
“Now that time has come, and we are days away from the start of what I believe will be a spectacular celebration of para sport at the most competitive Paralympic Games ever, which will be enjoyed by fans both in France and around the world.
“Paris 2024 promises to be a landmark Paralympic Games with our highest representation of female athletes ever and a host of talented athletes seeking to achieve personal best performances in one of the world’s great cities.”
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