Opening ceremony of the 2011 IPC World Athletics
Portugal enters tomorrow on track with five Paralympic altletas
The opening ceremony of the World Championship in Athletics IPC-2011 was held today, Jan. 21, the city of Christchurch, New Zealand.
With a parade of the 73 participating delegations began in Cambridge Terrace at 11:50 am and converged on the city's central square, near the Cathedral.
Loaded with symbolism, the ceremony was attended by Maori dances and songs and speeches of welcome from the President of the Local Organizing Committee of the Championships, Fiona Pickering, the Prime Minister of New Zealand, John Key and Vice President of International Paralympic Committee, Francois Newfoundland. Participants and spectators could still watch the raising of the flags of New Zealand and the CPI and hear their anthems.
Portugal participates in the Championship with a delegation of 37 members, of which 18 are athletes. The flag bearer of the delegation was the athlete lusa Madeira Samuel Davis, 19 year old athlete with intellectual disabilities and which will compete in the 1500 meters.
The ceremony ended at about 13:20 pm with the traditional Hakka.
First day of competition is tomorrow
Tomorrow, the first day of competitions, enter Portugal on track with the athletes Grace Fernandes, test 200 meters T38 class, and Jose Alves Goncalves, evidence of 400 meters T12, Nelson Gonçalves, in the F11 discus throwing, and Firmino Batista in the 100 meters T11.
They are expected to more than 1200 athletes and 900 staff members from 70 countries, is expected around 5000 spectators per day. The Portuguese delegation also includes elements of nineteen staff, a total of 37 elements that will participate in the last major athletics event before the Olympics.
For the first time in the history of athletics was allowed the participation of athletes from the four areas of disability (motor, visual, cerebral palsy and intellectual area), a world championship.
Will debut in a World IPC athletes Inês Fernandes, Nelson Gonçalves, Raquel Cerqueira, Ricardo Marques, Samuel Davis and Luis Gonçalves.
The CPP is responsible for coordinating the delegation, which has as main objective the training of athletes for the London 2012 Olympics and the maintenance of the athletes who are currently part of the Project Preparation Paralympic London
Source: International Paralympic Committee