London to open 2012 Paralympic Games

According to CNN, over the course of the 11-day event, some 4,280 athletes from 165 countries -- more than ever before -- will compete in more than 20 sports, with more than 500 gold medals up for grabs.

The opening ceremony show, titled "Enlightenment," will feature a cast of more than 3,000 adult volunteers, 100 children and more than 100 professional performers.

And the Paralympic flame will be carried into the Olympic Park in east London to light the cauldron at the climax of the opening ceremony.

The torch set off on a 24-hour relay Tuesday evening from Stoke Mandeville in Buckinghamshire, the birthplace of the Paralympic movement, and reached London Wednesday morning.

Thousands of people have lined the streets to see the Paralympic torch relay wend its way through the capital.

The torchbearers include Paralympians, people who have overcome disability to achieve their goals and local heroes nominated by their communities.

The relay route passes many iconic London sites, including Westminster Abbey, London Zoo, Tower Bridge and Abbey Road, where the torchbearers recreated the iconic Beatles album cover shot.

The Agitos, the symbol of the Paralympic Games, has replaced the five rings that were suspended from Tower Bridge during the Olympic Games.

And excitement levels are again rising in Britain and worldwide, with more than 2.3 million Paralympic tickets sold and huge numbers around the globe expected to watch the events on television and online.

"The Paralympic Games have come home to Britain -- and it will be the biggest Games yet, with more athletes, more countries and more spectators than ever before," said Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt.

"The talent, commitment and inspiration of the Torchbearers, and ParalympicsGB, reminds us all what can be achieved when we focus on what people can do, rather than what they can't."

Stoke Mandeville Hospital is seen as the spiritual home of the Games because it was there that German neurologist Dr. Ludwig Guttmann revolutionized the treatment of paraplegics post-World War II, including introducing sport as part of their rehabilitation programs.