‘Biggest and best Asian Para Games ever’ close in Hangzhou with praise from participants

HANGZHOU – As hearts met and dreams shone over the past seven days, the 4th Asian Para Games closed here on Saturday night under the theme of “Hearts Meet Dreams Shine”, highlighting the morale and unity of sports.

A total of 3,021 athletes from 44 countries and regions took part in Hangzhou, which marked the second time that China has hosted the continental para multi-sports event following its inaugural edition in 2010 in Guangzhou.

In all, 468 athletes clinched at least one medal, setting 21 new world records, 72 new Asian records and 283 Games records across 22 sports.

Many athletes, coaches and staff expressed their gratitude to the host city.

Japanese canoeist Hiromi Tatsumi, who took bronze in the men’s KL2 canoe final, said: “The venue is world-class, and is fully capable of hosting large-scale international events. The environment and barrier-free facilities here are excellent.”

The lawn bowls venue at Wenhui School was converted from a middle school playground.

Many artificial intelligence application scenarios were integrated into the facility. For example, when a visually impaired person enters the bathroom and asks for the location of the sink, the system will automatically provide directions through voice recognition.

If someone encounters an emergency in the bathroom and calls for help or falls to the ground, the system will automatically sound an alarm.

“The 19 competition venues with permanent barrier-free facilities are among the best competition venues I have ever seen. The venue equipment is first-class with the top-notch lighting and sound, and the barrier-free facilities are extremely convenient,” said Yang Jinkui, secretary-general of the Chinese delegation for the Asian Para Games.

Meanwhile, the beds in the athletes’ rooms had been adjusted to facilitate better rest for disabled athletes. “The modernized barrier-free facilities in the village make it easy for us to get around, and there are humanistic details to show Hangzhou’s charm,” Chinese swimmer Jiang Yuyan said.

Over the past three years, Hangzhou had renovated and upgraded 140,000 barrier-free spots, as well as 75 urban roads, more than 3,000km of blind-pedestrian friendly roads, 50 urban pedestrian bridges and tunnels, and more than 1,600 accessible public toilets.

Chinese State Councillor Shen Yiqin, Asian Paralympic Committee (APC) president Majid Rashed and chairman of the China Disabled Persons’ Federation Cheng Kai attended the closing ceremony at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center Stadium on Saturday night.

“Through the tireless efforts of all parties, we have delivered on our promise to stage ‘two Games of equal splendour’. We will never forget the many fantastic moments where para athletes from 44 countries and regions in Asia chase their dreams and push their limits,” said Cheng, who is also president of the Asian Para Games Hangzhou Organising Committee (Hapgoc).

“They have shown tenacity and the sportsmanship of unity, friendship, fair play and competition, and set one record after another. Their brilliant scoreboard testified to the value and meaning of life, and touched our hearts and our souls,” he added.

Rashed declared the 4th Asian Para Games closed, and praised them as “surpassing expectation”.

“I said that I thought this would be the biggest and best Asian Para Games ever, but it has surpassed my expectations,” he said in his speech.

He expressed his gratitude to the athletes for the inspirations they have brought, adding “you have shown the world that there are no limits to what can be achieved with determination and courage. All of this shows that the Paralympic Movement in Asia is getting stronger”.

Led by Afghanistan, the flags of the participating countries and regions entered the stadium followed by parade of athlete representatives, with spectators paying tribute with applause and chants.

Jiang, who won a record seven golds and a bronze, was the flag-bearer for the Chinese team.

After lowering the APC flag and playing the APC anthem, Hangzhou mayor Yao Gaoyuan handed over the flag to Rashed, who entrusted it to Hideaki Ohmura, governor of Aichi prefecture and Hideo Nakata, deputy mayor of Nagoya, the host city of the 2026 Asian Para Games.

The closing ceremony reached its pinnacle when an 8,000-year-old canoe dubbed as “first canoe of China” appeared on centre stage.

Two hearing-impaired children along with a non-disabled child rode the canoe towards the cauldron, implying that children with dreams will eventually realise them, accompanied and supported by love.

Echoing with the opening ceremony, a digital “Divine Bird” from the local Liangzhu culture hovered around the stadium and waved its wings gently, bidding farewell to the Asian Para Games cauldron with affection. The bird then turned into Fei Fei, the mascot of the Games, and blew out the cauldron.

China was represented by 439 athletes in 390 events of 22 sports. They set 12 world records and 36 Asian records. After winning 214 golds, 167 silvers and 140 bronzes, the team secured their best record at an Asian Para Games and finished atop the medal tally for the fourth consecutive edition.

Iran and Japan sit second and third in the tally with 44-46-41 and 42-49-59 respectively. In all, 33 countries and regions claimed at least one medal, equalling the record in 2018, while Yemen, Nepal and Kyrgyzstan won their first-ever medal at the Asian Para Games.

Singapore ranked 17th in the standings with three golds, three silvers and two bronzes – with swimmer Toh Wei Soong accounting for all three golds.

Canoe and taekwondo made their debuts at the Asian Para Games, while Chinese athletes took part in lawn bowls, chess and Go for the first time in Hangzhou. Xinhua