Impassioned Andrew Parsons veered firmly off the Paralympic piste and kicked off Beijing 2022 with a powerful political message – we want peace.
In one of the most overtly political speeches at a Games’ Opening Ceremony for decades, the International Paralympic Committee chief condemned war and ‘hate’ and assertively re-enforced his desire for a peaceful solution following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Parsons yesterday announced a shock 11 th -hour U-turn banning Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing at the Games after initially allowing them to feature under a neutral flag.
