The Croatian Paralympic Committee (HPO) organised a press conference, in collaboration with their long-term partner Allianz Croatia, earlier this week to announce the departure of the Croatian athletes for the Games and to present the steps forward Paris is making in terms of sports and society when it comes to people with disabilities.
At the 17th Summer Paralympics, about 4,400 participants from over 160 countries will compete in 22 sports.
The current list of Croatian competitors includes para-athletes Deni Černi, Ivan Katanušić, Erik Fabijan Kaurin, and Matija Sloup; para-swimmers Dino Sinovčić, Emma Mečić, and Paula Novina; para-table tennis players Anđela Mužinić Vincetić, Borna Zohil, and Helena Dretar Karić; boccia players Anamaria Arambašić and Davor Komar; and para-taekwondo athlete Ivan Mikulić.
Official confirmation is soon expected for recent World Para Athletics Championship medalists Velimir Šandor and Luka Baković. It is also expected that two more para-athletes, one para-triathlete, one more para-table tennis player, and one boccia athlete will qualify.
"Paralympic sports are better than ever before. The competition is becoming stronger and more ambitious every day. Over 2.5 million spectators will cheer for the Paralympic athletes in the stands and witness the power of Paralympic sports," said HPO president Ratko Kovačić.
"It has never been harder to qualify for the Paralympic Games. Anyone who qualifies for the Paralympics is a hero, and anyone who wins a medal is a super hero," he added.
For Mužinić Vincetić and Dretar Karić, Paris 2024 will be their fourth Paralympics, following London, Rio, and Tokyo. They have so far won two medals - a team silver in Rio de Janeiro and a bronze in Tokyo.
Allianz Croatia CEO Marijana Jakovac said the company was proudly a long-term partner with the HPO, adding that Paralympians are an inexhaustible source of inspiration. "Competing in the Paralympic Games is the pinnacle for every athlete with a disability, so the opportunity to support them makes us truly happy."
Croatia has so far won 26 medals at the Summer Paralympics - five golds, eight silvers, and 13 bronzes. The largest delegation was in Beijing in 2008 and London in 2012 with 25 representatives at each, while the last games in Tokyo saw 22 Croatian representatives.