Parliament House has been lit up in green and gold on Wednesday night for the Paris Paralympic Games as Australian sports nuts got used to setting their alarms for the wee hours of the morning to see the events live.
The Paralympics opening ceremony is screening live on Channel 9 and 9Now from 3.30am on Thursday morning. There will be a full replay from noon on Thursday.
Parliament House donned the green and gold until midnight on Wednesday night, the spectacle welcomed by Speaker Milton Dick.
"We are so proud of our 160 Aussie para-athletes, and as a proud Queenslander I will be cheering on the 45 representing the sunshine state," he said.
"Just like we did for our Olympians, what better way to recognise how proud of our Aussie Paralympian athletes, than by lighting up our iconic Australian Parliament House in green and gold colours."
The former Brisbane City Councillor now Labor Member for Oxley said he did have a favourite moment from the Paris Olympics.
"I love watching the swimming," he said.
"The standout was when Mollie O'Callaghan presented her gold medal to teammate Jamie Perkins. It was just such an Aussie thing to do. I am sure anyone who watched that couldn't help but to be so proud of the team spirit."
Who is he following in the Paralympics?
"Of course, I am backing Springfield local Taymon Kenton-Smith in the Para-archery," the ever-parochial Speaker said.
Twenty-two sports will be played across 18 venues at the Paris Paralympics which continue until September 8.
Paralympics LIVE Watch Party on Saturday
There's another chance to celebrate the Paralympics in a very special Canberra way this weekend.
The Australian Institute of Sport Arena is hosting a Paralympics LIVE Watch Party on Saturday from 10am to 2pm.
There will be kids' activities, sport demonstrations and challenges, big screens and bean bags.
More than 1500 people visited the newly-refurbished arena earlier this month for the Olympics LIVE Watch Party.
On Saturday, Canberrans will be able to watch the live broadcast and replays of the Paralympic Games via Channel 9 on the big screen, try sports including basketball, bocce and wheelchair rugby league, and send a message of support to our Paralympic team in Paris.
There will be giveaways, face painting, colouring-in, free site tours and access to the Australian Sports Commission's interactive sports exhibit, Sportex. The French Embassy will host a French quiz while Mix 106.3 will bring their prize wheel with Team Australia gear up for grabs.
Olympians Kim Brennan (rowing), Georgia Godwin (gymnastics) and Brendon Reading (race walking), and Paralympians Sue Powell (cycling), Louise Ellery (shot put) and Richard Nicholson (wheelchair racing) will also be there.
Australian Sports Commission CEO Kieren Perkins said the Olympics watch party had been "a huge success".
"Events like these are a great way to bring the community together to celebrate our current Paralympians who are doing us proud in Paris but also light the fire for the next generation of athletes who could be wearing the green and gold in Brisbane in eight years' time," he said.
Book your free ticket to the Paralympics watch party here.
