Paralympics to Open With Empty Stands but a Bigger Stage

Television exposure and new interest from sponsors are raising hopes that the Games can build on their momentum.

TOKYO — One Paralympic swimmer ended up training in the chilly Arkansas River for a while after the coronavirus pandemic cut off her access to a pool. Another borrowed a swim bench, set it up in her garage in Minnesota and simulated her strokes against the resistance of a pulley system. It was the closest she could come to propelling herself through water. And in Cardiff, Wales, a shot-put champion improvised by stringing a cargo net between apple and pear trees so he could safely practice in the yard of his new home.