The Olympic hearth this year, Athens is ready to inflame the fire and the spirit of the games once again bracing for the opening of the world's premier event for disabled athletes the 12th Paralympics.

The Mayor of Athens, Dora Bakoyianni, declared her city "absolutely ready" for the Games. "Where there is a will there is a way," she said on Thursday.

About 4,000 competitors from more than 140 countries have been readying for the opening ceremonies on Friday, which are already sold out. Mainly Athenians have so far bought well over half of 500,000 event tickets, the mayor announced.

The Games, which come less than three weeks after Greece hosted the 2004 Olympic Games, run through September 28.

Besides the sheer and unprecedented size of these Games, which have become the second largest sporting event in the world after the summer Olympics, another indication of their growing visibility is the presence of senior political leaders.

Both German President Horst Koehler and Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder will be on hand on Friday to support their countrymen and women, and French President Jacques Chirac personally saw off his nation's delegation from Paris.

Athletes will compete in 19 different disciplines, among them athletics and swimming. Team sports include 5-a-side and 7-a-side football, wheelchair basketball and rugby, as well as volleyball.

Bulgarian Paralympic delegation include ten athletes competing in three sports. The medal-hopefuls include Sydney 2000 Champion Ivanka Koleva, as well as on athletes Stela Eneva, Hristo Gerganski, Donko Angelov and Dechko Ovcharov, swimmer Polina Djourova and weightlifters Anton Pouskov, Spas Spassov and Mustafa Yuseinov.

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