Two British Paralympians lit the flame in Stoke Mandeville, a village northwest of London that's considered the birthplace of the Paralympic Games.
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00:00The Paralympic flame has been lit by British Paralympians Helen Rainsford and Gregor Ewan
00:06in Stoke Mandeville.
00:11The Northwest London village is widely considered to be the birthplace of the Paralympic Games,
00:17the first form of which was founded by Jewish neurosurgeon Ludwig Gutmann in 1948 for wheelchair
00:24athletes with war-related spinal injuries.
00:29For everyone involved in Paralympic movements, Stoke Mandeville represents sacred and cherished
00:33ground.
00:34It is here, a little over 76 years ago, that the visionary pioneer Sir Ludwig Gutmann created
00:40the Paralympic movement.
00:41I don't know about you guys, but I can feel his presence here today, no doubt about it.
00:47The flame will now travel to France under the English Channel, where it will be split
00:52into 12 flames that each will follow their own route through the different regions of
00:56before reuniting in Paris for the Paralympics opening ceremony.