end with a bang #4 - 常時英心：言葉の森から 1.0

リオデジャネイロパラリンピックがついに閉幕し、小池知事が旗を引き継ぎました。

Koike takes flag as Paralympics ends with a bang in Rio

RIO DE JANEIRO--An armless guitarist ripped out riffs with his toes, dancers in wheelchairs performed handstands and Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike was handed the Paralympic flag by Rio Mayor Eduardo Paes.
They marked the highlights of the closing ceremony of the Rio Paralympics on Sept. 18, as all eyes were shifting to the 2020 Paralympics in Tokyo.
The closing ceremony at the Maracana Stadium to wrap up 12 days of absorbing athletic feats began with a stirring performance by guitarist Jonathan Bastos, who was born without arms and plays with his feet.
Athletes celebrated by dancing in a circle to the Latin American rhythm, and the sounds of reggae and Bossa Nova filled the air.
“The noise you created, the passion you shared, the warmth you provided inspired Paralympians to achieve what some thought impossible,” International Paralympic Committee President Philip Craven told the crowd.
Footage of the Tokyo 1964 Paralympic Games was shown on the big screen.
It featured Fujio Watanabe, a table tennis gold medalist in that Paralympic Games, who said he was inspired by the attitude of overseas disabled athletes at the time who enjoyed their lives just as much as people who are not physically challenged.
"Disability will become a new possibility" was the message emblazoned across the stadium's big screen.
Professional dancer Koichi Omae, who has lost part of one leg, danced powerfully on the stage, and spectators erupted into applause for performers who had artificial legs or Down syndrome.
At the end of the ceremony, spectators sung songs that celebrated “love” and “joy” together with athletes and performers, who were given a standing ovation.
Fireworks were set off to give the event an explosive finale, and this announcement echoed around the stadium: “Brazilians don’t say goodbye. Let’s meet in Tokyo the next time.”