The 2016 Paralympics opened in Rio de Janeiro last night. Swimmer Jón Margeir Sverrisson was the flag-bearer for Iceland, RÚV reports. This is his second Olympics, but he won gold in the 200 m freestyle at the London Paralympics four years ago.
Aside from Jón Margeir, athletes who compete for Iceland at the games are archer Þorsteinn Halldórsson, javelin thrower Helgi Sveinsson, and swimmers Sonja Sigurðardóttir and Thelma Björg Björnsdóttir.
Icelandic President Guðni Th. Jóhannesson attended the opening ceremony, which he found impressive. He posted on his Facebook page, “I do look forward to following the Icelandic contestants. It’s a victory in itself to make it here, but these are competitive people who want to win medals. Let’s aim high. Those who always pretend to know their limits never get a step further.”
Watch a video of the Icelandic team at the opening ceremony here.
