Tokyo Paralympics Open in Empty Stadium

Tokyo Paralympics Open in Empty Stadium
Fireworks are set off during the Paralympic Opening Ceremony over the Olympic Stadium for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, on Aug. 24, 2021. Bob Martin for OIS/via AP
The Associated Press
Updated:

TOKYO—The Paralympics began Tuesday in the same empty National Stadium—during the same pandemic—as the opening and closing ceremonies of the recently completed Tokyo Olympics.

Japanese head of state Naruhito officially opened the games, this time under the theme “We Have Wings.” Among the few on hand were Douglas Emhoff, husband of U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons, and International Olympic President Thomas Bach.