The International Paralympic Committee, in accordance with the agreement signed with the International Olympic Committee in June 2001, follows the same rules as the protocol manuals issued by the Organizing Committees of each edition of the Olympic and Paralympic Games since the 2002 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games.In this way, the order in which delegations enter the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games does not follow the tradition of Greece being the first country to enter, as it is not the historical birthplace of the Paralympic Games.However, the rule of a couple being flag bearers for each participating National Olympic Committee was extended to the Paralympic Games and for the first time ever, each NPC was invited to appoint one female and one male athlete to jointly carry their flag during the Opening Ceremony.[1]
Incidents
Fall of Kabul
Under the assumption that Afghanistan's athletes would be unable to compete in the Paralympics due to the
Fall of Kabul to the
Taliban, the
International Paralympic Committee invited the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (
UNHCR) to represent Afghanistan in the Parade of Nations as a "sign of solidarity".[2] However, the UNHCR declined to name a representative and a volunteer served as Afghanistan's flagbearer.[3] The two athletes,
Zakia Khudadadi and
Hossain Rasouli, were evacuated from Afghanistan two days after the opening ceremony and later confirmed their participation in the Paralympics via a flight from Australia. The two carried Afghanistan's flag at the
closing ceremony.[4]
Non Participating Countries
New Zealand's and Brazil athletes also did not participate in the parade.[3]
Salomon Islands withdrawn
Solomon Islands had its national flag paraded at the opening ceremony, but ultimately the Solomon Islands team withdrew from the 2020 Summer Paralympics due logistics issues.[5][6]
Order of Parade
This was the first edition in which the new protocols approved at the 138th Session of the International Olympic Committee held days before the ceremony were used officially.Some rules were maintained from previous procedures, such as the obligation for the
Refugee Paralympic Team delegation to be the first to enter during the Parade of Nations and the maintenance of the entry of other delegations in the alphabetical order of the host country were maintained as the same entering as the last team.[7] Another change was the positioning of the teams whose countries will be the future hosts of the next Summer Paralympic Games, which entered the reverse sequence.According to the original planning, the
United States would be the 5th delegation to enter placed between Afghanistan and United Arab Emirates delegations,but as the
2028 Summer Paralympics are scheduled to be held in
Los Angeles they were placed as 160th delegation.This situation also happened with
France which according to the protocol manual would be the 119th delegation, positioned between Brazil and Bulgaria, but due to the fact that
Paris will be the host city of
2024 Summer Paralympics who entered as the 161st delegation and finally the host nation
Japan.[8]
The
Republic of North Macedonia had previously competed under the provisional name of Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, because of the
disputed status of its official name. It was officially renamed to
North Macedonia in February 2019 and the National Paralympic Committee of North Macedonia (NMPC) was officially adopted in February 2020. It was North Macedonia's first appearance at the Summer Paralympics under its new name.[11]
Several of the nations marched under their formal Japanese names. For example, the Great Britain delegation marched under the formal name Eikoku ("United Kingdom")[12] rather than the better known informal Igirisu (イギリス), and China's delegation marched under Chūka Jinmin Kyōwakoku ("People's Republic of China") instead of the more common Chūgoku (中国).
^Short name Refugee Paralympic Team/難民選手団 on the panels and as announced.
^Afghanistan's delegation was unable to march at the opening ceremony as the
Taliban re-invaded Kabul days before the games. But then the IPC announced that two para-athletes from Afghanistan had arrived in Tokyo to participate in the Tokyo Paralympics.
^Replaced
Mariyappan Thangavelu (as original flagbearer), who was quarantined due to possible COVID-19 exposure.[35]
^The panel and announcement both used the name RPC.
^RPC was sorted based on its English abbreviation NPC RPC, in Japanese エヌ・ピー・シー・アール・ピー・シー (Enu Pī Shī Āru Pī Shī).[52]
^ The Guinea team had two registered athlete for Athletics.
^The delegation was represented in the Parade, but ultimately withdrew from competition.
^New Zealand's delegation did not participate who were quarantined and isolated for 7 days.
^The Madagascar team had only one registered athlete, but did not participate in the parade.
^Among the Citations, "Toca su turno" (in Spanish), dated (24 August 2021), mentions "Edgar Barajas" as a male flag bearer. However, comparing the other Citations with photos, It is certain that "Diego Lopez Diaz" was actually the male flag bearer of Mexico.
^Instead, a volunteer was holding the flag in his hand.
Reviews
The names of each para-athlete who participated in the Opening Ceremony's Parade were projected and scrolled on the "
digital signage" equivalent to the inner diameter of the stadium.[211]
^"NHK anchor announces 'Taiwan' team at Tokyo Paralympics". Taiwan News. 2021-08-25. Retrieved 2021-08-25. A total of 11 Taiwanese representatives took part in the parade, led by long jumper Yang Chuan-hui (楊川輝) and javelin thrower Liu Ya-ting (劉雅婷), who served as the flag bearers.
^Citation listed "Diego Lopez Diaz" as male flag-bearer - Tavares, Joanna (24 August 2021).
"Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games opening ceremony". New York Daily News.
Archived from the original on 25 August 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2021. Flag bearers Amalia Perez and Diego Lopez Diaz of Team Mexico lead their delegation in the parade of athletes during the opening ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games at the Olympic Stadium on Aug. 24, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (Buda Mendes/Getty Images)
^Spanish citation listed "Diego Lopez Diaz" as male flag-bearer -
"Todos los atletas mexicanos en los Juegos Paralímpicos". LIFE AND STYLE (in Spanish). 24 August 2021.
Archived from the original on August 25, 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2021. Amalia Pérez y Diego López Díaz entraron como abanderados de la selección paralímpica de México al Estadio Nacional de Japón. (Buda Mendes/Getty Images)
^For reference, a photo of Diego Lopez Diaz in spanish citation - Giraudi, Matías (2 September 2021).
"Vale oro" (in Spanish). Diario Once. Retrieved 18 September 2021. Diego López Díaz, ganó el primer lugar en natación de 50 metros libres.
^exceptionally, a spanish citation listed "Edgar Barajas" as the male flag-bearer (but no his photo) - Giraudi, Matías (24 August 2021).
"Toca su turno" (in Spanish). Diario Once.
Archived from the original on August 26, 2021. Retrieved 26 August 2021. México tuvo su desfile número 13 (el total de participaciones), con Amalia Pérez y Edgar Barajas como abanderados de la delegación.
The International Paralympic Committee, in accordance with the agreement signed with the International Olympic Committee in June 2001, follows the same rules as the protocol manuals issued by the Organizing Committees of each edition of the Olympic and Paralympic Games since the 2002 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games.In this way, the order in which delegations enter the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games does not follow the tradition of Greece being the first country to enter, as it is not the historical birthplace of the Paralympic Games.However, the rule of a couple being flag bearers for each participating National Olympic Committee was extended to the Paralympic Games and for the first time ever, each NPC was invited to appoint one female and one male athlete to jointly carry their flag during the Opening Ceremony.[1]
Incidents
Fall of Kabul
Under the assumption that Afghanistan's athletes would be unable to compete in the Paralympics due to the
Fall of Kabul to the
Taliban, the
International Paralympic Committee invited the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (
UNHCR) to represent Afghanistan in the Parade of Nations as a "sign of solidarity".[2] However, the UNHCR declined to name a representative and a volunteer served as Afghanistan's flagbearer.[3] The two athletes,
Zakia Khudadadi and
Hossain Rasouli, were evacuated from Afghanistan two days after the opening ceremony and later confirmed their participation in the Paralympics via a flight from Australia. The two carried Afghanistan's flag at the
closing ceremony.[4]
Non Participating Countries
New Zealand's and Brazil athletes also did not participate in the parade.[3]
Salomon Islands withdrawn
Solomon Islands had its national flag paraded at the opening ceremony, but ultimately the Solomon Islands team withdrew from the 2020 Summer Paralympics due logistics issues.[5][6]
Order of Parade
This was the first edition in which the new protocols approved at the 138th Session of the International Olympic Committee held days before the ceremony were used officially.Some rules were maintained from previous procedures, such as the obligation for the
Refugee Paralympic Team delegation to be the first to enter during the Parade of Nations and the maintenance of the entry of other delegations in the alphabetical order of the host country were maintained as the same entering as the last team.[7] Another change was the positioning of the teams whose countries will be the future hosts of the next Summer Paralympic Games, which entered the reverse sequence.According to the original planning, the
United States would be the 5th delegation to enter placed between Afghanistan and United Arab Emirates delegations,but as the
2028 Summer Paralympics are scheduled to be held in
Los Angeles they were placed as 160th delegation.This situation also happened with
France which according to the protocol manual would be the 119th delegation, positioned between Brazil and Bulgaria, but due to the fact that
Paris will be the host city of
2024 Summer Paralympics who entered as the 161st delegation and finally the host nation
Japan.[8]
The
Republic of North Macedonia had previously competed under the provisional name of Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, because of the
disputed status of its official name. It was officially renamed to
North Macedonia in February 2019 and the National Paralympic Committee of North Macedonia (NMPC) was officially adopted in February 2020. It was North Macedonia's first appearance at the Summer Paralympics under its new name.[11]
Several of the nations marched under their formal Japanese names. For example, the Great Britain delegation marched under the formal name Eikoku ("United Kingdom")[12] rather than the better known informal Igirisu (イギリス), and China's delegation marched under Chūka Jinmin Kyōwakoku ("People's Republic of China") instead of the more common Chūgoku (中国).
^Short name Refugee Paralympic Team/難民選手団 on the panels and as announced.
^Afghanistan's delegation was unable to march at the opening ceremony as the
Taliban re-invaded Kabul days before the games. But then the IPC announced that two para-athletes from Afghanistan had arrived in Tokyo to participate in the Tokyo Paralympics.
^Replaced
Mariyappan Thangavelu (as original flagbearer), who was quarantined due to possible COVID-19 exposure.[35]
^The panel and announcement both used the name RPC.
^RPC was sorted based on its English abbreviation NPC RPC, in Japanese エヌ・ピー・シー・アール・ピー・シー (Enu Pī Shī Āru Pī Shī).[52]
^ The Guinea team had two registered athlete for Athletics.
^The delegation was represented in the Parade, but ultimately withdrew from competition.
^New Zealand's delegation did not participate who were quarantined and isolated for 7 days.
^The Madagascar team had only one registered athlete, but did not participate in the parade.
^Among the Citations, "Toca su turno" (in Spanish), dated (24 August 2021), mentions "Edgar Barajas" as a male flag bearer. However, comparing the other Citations with photos, It is certain that "Diego Lopez Diaz" was actually the male flag bearer of Mexico.
^Instead, a volunteer was holding the flag in his hand.
Reviews
The names of each para-athlete who participated in the Opening Ceremony's Parade were projected and scrolled on the "
digital signage" equivalent to the inner diameter of the stadium.[211]
^"NHK anchor announces 'Taiwan' team at Tokyo Paralympics". Taiwan News. 2021-08-25. Retrieved 2021-08-25. A total of 11 Taiwanese representatives took part in the parade, led by long jumper Yang Chuan-hui (楊川輝) and javelin thrower Liu Ya-ting (劉雅婷), who served as the flag bearers.
^Citation listed "Diego Lopez Diaz" as male flag-bearer - Tavares, Joanna (24 August 2021).
"Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games opening ceremony". New York Daily News.
Archived from the original on 25 August 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2021. Flag bearers Amalia Perez and Diego Lopez Diaz of Team Mexico lead their delegation in the parade of athletes during the opening ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games at the Olympic Stadium on Aug. 24, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (Buda Mendes/Getty Images)
^Spanish citation listed "Diego Lopez Diaz" as male flag-bearer -
"Todos los atletas mexicanos en los Juegos Paralímpicos". LIFE AND STYLE (in Spanish). 24 August 2021.
Archived from the original on August 25, 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2021. Amalia Pérez y Diego López Díaz entraron como abanderados de la selección paralímpica de México al Estadio Nacional de Japón. (Buda Mendes/Getty Images)
^For reference, a photo of Diego Lopez Diaz in spanish citation - Giraudi, Matías (2 September 2021).
"Vale oro" (in Spanish). Diario Once. Retrieved 18 September 2021. Diego López Díaz, ganó el primer lugar en natación de 50 metros libres.
^exceptionally, a spanish citation listed "Edgar Barajas" as the male flag-bearer (but no his photo) - Giraudi, Matías (24 August 2021).
"Toca su turno" (in Spanish). Diario Once.
Archived from the original on August 26, 2021. Retrieved 26 August 2021. México tuvo su desfile número 13 (el total de participaciones), con Amalia Pérez y Edgar Barajas como abanderados de la delegación.