In a way, you could argue that Paris 2024 was more of a sequel to London 2012 than the games of Rio or Tokyo were. That is, there is more of a direct comparison. Rio 2016 had huge financial issues; and, of course, the Tokyo 2020 games were badly affected by Covid. Then there’s the fact that both London and Paris are cosmopolitan European capitals, renowned for their glamour. Thus, like many others, I think last night we saw the French follow up to London.

The thing is, for me, there is no comparison: I live in London, and lived here in 2012. I have firsthand experience of the games; I remember what it felt like to be here in 2012; I even still remember what it was like with Lyn and the Paraorchestra as they waited backstage, before going out to play before the city, country, and entire world. How can I possibly compare what I experienced that night twelve years ago with what I watched on my computer screen, interrupted by adverts, last night? For me, the two are entirely different.

That said, last night our French friends put on a bloody good show. As others are saying, the Paris 2024 paralympics were every bit as good as the London games were in terms of disability inclusion, and foregrounding disability rights. I thought some of the dancing in the ceremony was phenomenal. Of course, I was rather disappointed not to see a full blown French Paraorchestra – they really missed a trick there. The inclusion of Jean-Michelle Jarre was cool, and made me naturally think of Lyn, although thanks to the ad breaks I couldn’t really appreciate it.

Thus, Paris 2024 has come to a close, and the baton has been handed to LA. I still wish I could have gone to Paris during the games this summer, to experience it just as I experienced London 2012, but c’est la vie. Now we have Los Angeles to look forward to, and I’m already fascinated to see how the Americans will put on their paralympics.