The delegation of Neutral Individual Athletes (NIAs) carrying Russian or Belarusian passports was not the only one absent from the Paralympic Games opening ceremony on Wednesday 28 August at Place de la Concorde. The Zambian flag was also not seen at the athletes' parade, despite the presence of two competitors on the entry list. IPC spokesperson Craig Spence explained this the following day in a press conference: " No one has arrived yet, we have had no communication with Zambia in the last few days. So we sent them an email to say that if they did not confirm their travel by showing us the tickets, we would remove the flag." A confirmation message from the Zambian Paralympic Committee finally arrived at the IPC on Thursday 29 August. However, the body did not specify when the delegation was expected in the village. Zambia's two Paralympic participants, Monica Munga and Lassam Katongo, are due to compete in the para athletics events on 4 and 5 September at the Stade de France.
