Paralympian Ezra Frech eyes ‘biggest party of all time’ as LA28 approaches

LOS ANGELES – For American Paralympian Ezra Frech, the countdown to the LA28 Paralympic Games is an all-consuming passion as he prepares for what he calls a transformative moment for the city and the world.

“I lay in bed at night and that’s all I think about. I get up in the morning and that is all I think about. It goes through my head 24-7,” he told Reuters on the red carpet of the ESPYs on July 16, where he was nominated for Best Athlete with a Disability.

Frech, a track and field athlete who competed at the Tokyo and Paris Games, is confident that Los Angeles will deliver an unparalleled spectacle in 2028.

“LA28 will be literally the biggest party of all time,” added the Los Angeles native, who competes at the University of Southern California.

“This city knows how to throw a party, and it knows how to throw a sporting event.”

Frech, who was born with congenital limb differences, captured two gold medals in Paris – winning the 100m and high jump in the T63 category for athletes with a single above-the-knee leg amputation.

The Paris 2024 Paralympics set a high bar, he acknowledged, but he believes Angelenos are ready to take the event to new heights.

“Paris set a great foundation. They showed us what a Paralympic Games can be, and now we as Angelenos have to take it to the next level,” he said.

Frech is featured in the documentary Adaptive, which will be released on US streaming service Peacock on July 28.

The show follows him, swimmer Jamal Hill, and women’s wheelchair basketball players Courtney Ryan and Josie Aslakson, as they navigate the road from Tokyo to Paris.

“It’s raw, it’s emotional, it’s gritty,” Frech said. “There’s laughter, tears, highs, lows, and then ultimately, the ultimate peak, which was Paris for me.”

Looking ahead to 2028, he is resolute about his goals. He has said he is gunning for the treble crown in LA – retaining his two titles from Paris and adding a long jump gold to his collection.

“One hundred per cent I plan to compete, and I guarantee I’m winning all golds in LA,” the amiable 20-year-old said with a smile.

Beyond personal achievements, Frech also emphasised the ongoing fight for Paralympians to be recognised alongside their able-bodied counterparts.

“We are not asking for pity claps. We’re not asking people to celebrate us just because we’re disabled,” he said. “We’re out here competing on the highest level.”

The LA28 Paralympics are scheduled to take place from Aug 15 to 27, 2028.

In other news, Paris on July 18 installed the first of 10 statues of pioneering French women displayed during the 2024 Olympics in a northern district of the capital.

The 10 statues featured as part of the French capital’s boundary-breaking opening ceremony for the Summer Games last July.

They include Simone Veil, who spearheaded the legalisation of abortion in France, and the feminist writer Simone de Beauvoir.

The first of them, a golden representation of the campaigning lawyer Gisele Halimi, was set up in the capital’s northern La Chapelle district. REUTERS, AFP