Princess Kate and Prince William issue joint statement ahead of Paralympics

Princess Kate and Prince William have issued a joint statement ahead of the Paralympics opening ceremony today (28 August).

On Wednesday (28 August), more than 4,4000 Paralympic athletes will descend on Paris to compete for gold in competitions such as 5-a-side Blind Football, table tennis and sitting volleyball.

And it's clear members of the Royal Family can't wait to tune in to the major sporting event and cheer on Team GB as they battle it out for gold.

The Prince and Princess of Wales took to social media earlier this afternoon to share a statement.

It reads: "Looking forward to another few weeks of incredible sport!

"Wishing the very best of luck to our @paralympicsgb_official athletes and all those competing at #Paris2024."

They signed off: "W & C."

It is currently unknown whether any members of the Royal Family will be attending the event in-person, although Royals from other European countries have been spotted at the Paris Olympics in the past few weeks.

Talking of the Paralympics, Gen Z have coined an all-new term to refer to it following the popularity of Cozzie Livs (cost of living) and Genny Lec (general election).

This one is definitely debatable, because should we really be abbreviating the Paralympics to Parrie Limps?

Some things are better left without an abbreviation, and we kind of think that's one of those things.

Kayon Hibbert, Guide Manager of Evan Evans, said: "Brits have always loved a good abbreviation - the challenge for tourists who don’t live here, and clearly lots of people who do, is to keep up with the latest words and phrases popularised by influencers on social media."

And as for its original name, it's called 'Paralympic' for a reason many may not know.

Darlene Hunter, a two-time medallist told KAKE News: "Paralympics is parallel to the Olympics. So a lot of people think para means paraplegic, but it actually means parallel."

Another person explained on X: "The word 'Paralympic' derives from the Greek preposition 'para' (beside or alongside) and the word 'Olympic'.

"Its meaning is that Paralympics are the parallel Games to the Olympics and illustrates how the two movements exist side-by-side."

A third added: "Contrary to popular belief, the 'para' in 'Paralympics' doesn’t stand for 'paralysed', but for 'parallel'."