The Special Olympics World Games Abu Dhabi 2019 will kick off with a parade, cauldron lighting and a series of moving performances.

The spectacle of the Special Olympics World Games 2019 Opening Ceremony will be like no other event. The Opening Ceremony kicks off seven extraordinary days of competition and special events where the abilities of athletes with intellectual disabilities will be celebrated at an international level.

More than 40,000 spectators are expected to be in attendance at Zayed Sports City when the competition kicks off on March 14. There’ll also be millions of people watching throughout the world, all with their eyes on Abu Dhabi.

A parade will feature 7,500 athletes from more than 190 nations. Most notably, it will be the largest number of athletes and nations to ever take part in a parade at a Special Olympics Opening Ceremony.

The athletes will also be joined by a number of international celebrities and sporting heroes who are supporting the event.

The opening ceremony is due to begin at 5pm on Thursday March 14, 2019.

Further details on and how you can buy tickets and where and when you can watch the ceremony will be announced soon.