Sports
No athletes but UNHCR representative to bear Afghan flag at Paralympics
Afghanistan’s flag will be present at the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Paralympics on Tuesday in “a sign of solidarity” after the nation’s athletes are unable to compete in Japan.
Commercial flights in and out of Afghanistan have been suspended since the Taliban group gained control of the country last week.
As a result, Afghan athletes can not make it to Tokyo.
But the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) president Andrew Parsons said on Monday that their flag would be there at Tuesday’s opening ceremony.
“We will include the Afghanistan flag in the ceremony in a sign of solidarity and we have invited the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) representative here to act as the flag bearer,” Parsons said.
“We would like to have them here, unfortunately it is not possible, but they will be here in spirit.”
The insidethegames.biz portal said that two Afghan athletes had qualified for the Paralympics which run until Sept. 5.
One Afghan will however be competing, Abbas Karimi, who fled the country several years ago and is part of the refugee team at the Paralympics.
Continue Reading
-
Latest6 days agoPastor Chris Oyakhilome announces mother’s passing at 88 [VIDEO]
-
Latest1 week agoArsenal eye €70-80m move for Real Madrid star
-
Football4 days agoHow David Beckham made $51.1m from 2026 World Cup, surpassing winners’ prize
-
Crime7 days agoPolice arrest suspect, launch manhunt for 2 others over Delta Education Director’s death
-
Latest6 days agoHow adulterated palm oil, coloured pepper are putting consumers at risk
-
Latest1 week agoObi left $155m in Anambra, Otti insists amid debt controversy
-
Crime6 days agoDeaths in NSCDC Custody: Can Nigeria guarantee the safety of detainees?
-
Comments and Issues5 days agoFani-Kayode on Atiku: Separating claims from the record