With less than 10 days left until the start of Paris Paralympic Games, in France, Italy wants to break its medal record at the mega sporting event.
Led by flag bearers Ambra Sabatini and Luca Mazzone, the Azzurra delegation will be made up of 141 athletes (70 men and 71 women) involved in 17 sports.
Sprinter Valentina Petrillo, the first transgender person to participate in the Paralympics, will be one of Italy's main protagonists in the French capital.
“When I was a man, I wasn't myself, I wasn't happy and I ran with the handbrake on. However, as a woman, I am happy and I am no longer afraid, not even of threats on social media. I know there will be controversy, but I hope my story serves as an example for many others,” the Italian told AFP.
Present at the Paralympics since the first edition, which took place in Rome in 1960, Italy has won 599 medals, including 167 gold, 202 silver and 230 bronze.
The Azzurri delegation will have the challenge of surpassing the best campaign in its history at the mega event, held in Tokyo, Japan, when it reached the podium 69 times.
The opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games is scheduled to take place on August 28 on the Champs-Élysées and Place de la Concorde. (HANDLE)
