During an hour-long event organised by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), ParalympicsGB and WheelPower, British Paralympians Helene Raynsford and Gregor Ewan created the Paralympic Flame in front of an audience of 250 invited guests.

Dignitaries including IPC President Andrew Parsons, Paris 2024 President Tony Estanguet, ParalympicsGB President Nick Webborn CBE, WheelPower patron and British Paralympian Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson DBE, DL, and French Ambassador to the United Kingdom Hélène Duchêne attended the event. 

Prior to the Paralympic Flame lighting, attendees witnessed the premiere of a short film which was later played at the Paris 2024 Opening Ceremony. Produced by Emmy Award-winning company Harder Than You Think, the film highlights the evolution of the Paralympic Movement since its creation at Stoke Mandeville in 1948.

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“Sacred and cherished ground”

Speaking at the event, IPC President Parsons stated the importance of celebrating Stoke Mandeville’s place in Paralympic history. “For everyone involved in the Paralympic Movement, Stoke Mandeville represents sacred and cherished ground. It is here 76 years ago that the visionary pioneer Sir Ludwig Guttmann created the Paralympic Movement. By organising a sport event for 16 injured World War two veterans – using Para sport as a form of rehabilitation – Guttmann started something very special.

“Through sport he created a transformational movement that today has a profound impact globally, advancing the lives of lives of millions of people with disabilities. Little did he know that what he created here in 1948 would go on to become one of the world’s biggest sport events. The Paralympic Games is now a spectacular showcase of sport, an event that attracts billions of global TV viewers, and the only worldwide event of impact which puts persons with disabilities front and centre.”

“A new level of global visibility”

Tony Estanguet, President of the Paris 2024 Organising Committee, said: “Just as we did for the Olympic Games, we are aiming to capture the world’s imagination. Our ambition is to take the Paralympic Games to a new level of global visibility and impact, by showcasing the Paralympians’ performances on an iconic stage, right at the centre of our society. These Games are a generational opportunity to transform ideas about disability in France, and to show ourselves, over 10 days, what it can be like to live in a more inclusive world.” 

“The place of sport in rehabilitation”

Nick Webborn CBE, ParalympicsGB President, said: “I’m thrilled that Stoke Mandeville is being recognised today as the source of the flame here at the home of the Paralympics. Stoke Mandeville is a special place to me. Forty-three years ago, I too came here after a spinal cord injury, also as an injured serviceman to the wooden huts of the National Spinal Injuries Unit. I started my journey of both recovery, and discovery, of the place of sport in rehabilitation and reintegration of disabled people into life and society.

“That summer in 1981, I also witnessed my first Stoke Mandeville Games and my love affair with the Paralympic Movement was born. I’m proud to recognise the history and role of the Paralympic Movement from its humble beginnings and a clear sense of purpose to the third largest sport event in the world.”

“A message of peace, goodwill and hope”

Eleven-time Paralympic gold medallist Baroness Grey-Thompson DBE, DL said: “As a proud Paralympian and someone who grew up pushing and racing around the track here at Stoke Mandeville Stadium, I know for myself the importance of this place as the birthplace of the Paralympic Movement. From the pioneering work of Sir Ludwig Guttmann at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, and the use of sport to inspire disabled people to live active lives, the Paralympics he created continue to inspire the world to see what disabled people can achieve through sport. 

“The Stoke Mandeville story and its legacy, symbolised by the Paralympic Flame, will travel with a message of peace, goodwill and hope for all the athletes and delegations in Paris to inspire the world.” 

British Paralympians create the Paralympic Flame

The honour of creating the Paralympic Flame at Stoke Mandeville fell to two British Paralympians, Beijing 2008 Paralympic rowing champion Helene Raynsford and three-time Paralympian in wheelchair curling, Gregor Ewan.

Raynsford, the first-ever Paralympic gold medallist in Para rowing, said: “It’s an honour to light the Paralympic Flame here in Stoke Mandeville. As a Paralympian and as Chair of the Athlete Commission, we are so proud of the history of the Paralympic movement and Stoke Mandeville’s role in that.”

Ewan, who has competed in every Paralympic Winter Games since Sochi 2014, said: “I feel the weight of the athletes who have competed before us and those that will come after us. The Paralympic Movement is a special movement and one that I am proud to have played my part in.”

Saturday’s event marked the first time the Paralympic Flame has been created at Stoke Mandeville since the London 2012 Paralympic Games. From now on, the Paralympic Flame will always be created at Stoke Mandeville as part of efforts by the IPC, ParalympicsGB, and WheelPower to increase global awareness of the role Stoke Mandeville and Sir Ludwig Guttmann played in the birth and development of the Paralympic Movement.  

Paris 2024 Paralympic Torch Relay

Following the lighting of the Paralympic Flame, the first torchbearer of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games Torch Relay was IPC President Andrew Parsons who ran a short circuit of the Stoke Mandeville athletics track. The Flame was later passed from the United Kingdom to France through the Channel Tunnel, splitting off into 12 separate flames to travel throughout France, before converging on Paris on 28th August, where the Paralympic Cauldron was lit at the Paralympic Games Opening Ceremony.

Image: © Getty Images. Helene Raynsford and Gregor Ewan light the Paralympic Flame, Paris 2024 Paralympic Flame Lighting Ceremony, August 24th 2024, Stoke Mandeville, Buckinghamshire.