:00:18. > :00:22.Good afternoon, on the day when Wales welcomed the Paralympic flame.
:00:22. > :00:25.With just two days to go before the start of the games in London, a
:00:25. > :00:28.ceremonial cauldron has been lit in Cardiff. The flame will then be
:00:28. > :00:32.united with ones lit in Scotland, Northern Ireland and England, at
:00:32. > :00:41.Stoke Mandeville, the birthplace of the Paralympics. It'll then make
:00:41. > :00:44.its way to the Opening ceremony. Within the last hour, organisers
:00:44. > :00:49.have said they are scaling back some of the events tonight because
:00:49. > :00:55.of the weather. But they are determined to plough ahead with
:00:55. > :00:58.tonight's party. Any moment, I will be chatting to us of our greatest
:00:59. > :01:02.Paralympic athletes. Nick Palit now, on the lighting on the Paralympic
:01:02. > :01:05.flame. Just after 8am, a crowd of around a hundred braved the rain to
:01:05. > :01:08.see the Paralympic flame burn bright over Cardiff. Lighting it,
:01:08. > :01:12.Paralympic cyclist Simon Richardson who won two golds and a silver at
:01:12. > :01:15.Bejing, but is unable to compete in London, as he was injured in a hit
:01:15. > :01:23.and run accident while training on his bike. The Welsh flame was lit
:01:23. > :01:29.by Scouts last week at the summit of Snowdon. It is great to be able
:01:29. > :01:33.to will light the flame in Wales. Teams from five continents have
:01:33. > :01:36.made Wales their training base. Today Paralympians from Swansea and
:01:36. > :01:46.Conwy lit lanterns from the Cardiff Cauldron, for torch relays in their
:01:46. > :01:49.
:01:49. > :01:52.own communities. It is an amazing honour. One of those splinter
:01:52. > :01:55.flames lit from the Cardiff Cauldron arrived at Eirias Park in
:01:55. > :01:58.Colwyn Bay by mid afternoon and a mini relay was held around the
:01:58. > :02:00.running track. Inside a showcase of Paralympic events including
:02:00. > :02:10.wheelchair basketball from the Conwy Thunder, one of many sports
:02:10. > :02:16.that's seen a surge in interest. hope to develop all the sports
:02:16. > :02:19.further. And hopefully unearth I Paralympian one day. In a torch
:02:19. > :02:22.relay around the Welsh capital, the flame also visited Rookwood
:02:22. > :02:29.Hospital, a facility that's played a huge part in the recovery of so
:02:29. > :02:32.many Welsh Paralympians. Many people have achieved high levels of
:02:32. > :02:36.excellence within sport and we are proud of them and the legacy they
:02:36. > :02:45.give to people who are beginning their journey after a serious
:02:45. > :02:50.injury. After Rookwood, it was on to Cardiff City's House of Sport.
:02:50. > :02:54.In his head, he is really sporty. He is really sporty but his head --
:02:54. > :02:57.body does not match his wishes. He can really shine here and be really
:02:57. > :03:00.good at something. Eventually, the Welsh flame will join others from
:03:00. > :03:04.To light a flame at Stoke Mandeville, the spiritual home of
:03:04. > :03:06.the Paralympic Movement. Well, a little earlier our reporter
:03:06. > :03:15.Tomos Dafydd spoke to one of Wales's most successful
:03:15. > :03:25.Paralympians, Baroness Tanni Grey Thompson. She told him which of the
:03:25. > :03:29.38 Welsh athletes we should keep an eye out for. Welsh athletes to
:03:29. > :03:34.amazingly well. Ellie Simmonds is not lost budgie trains in Wales.
:03:34. > :03:40.Nathan Stephens is a field event. Across the sport, there has been
:03:40. > :03:47.tremendous representation. This is the biggest Welsh representation. I
:03:47. > :03:50.think they will show the other home countries how strong Wales is.
:03:50. > :03:56.when your first medal nearly a quarter of a century ago. How has
:03:56. > :04:02.it changed over the years? They have changed out of all recognition,
:04:02. > :04:06.to be honest. It had only just been brought into use as a word. Over
:04:06. > :04:10.time, there has been massive increase in sponsorship and media
:04:10. > :04:14.coverage. I was seeing some of that sort the end of my career. But to
:04:14. > :04:19.be in a situation where it is a sell-out is incredible. In Beijing,
:04:19. > :04:23.the seats were full but in reality, they gave a lot of those seats away.
:04:23. > :04:26.In these games, every single ticket has been sold. That means a huge
:04:26. > :04:35.amount to the athletes. People are there because they genuinely want
:04:35. > :04:38.to be there to watch. As we've seen, events have been held in Cardiff,
:04:38. > :04:44.but celebrations are also being held in Colwyn Bay in north Wales.
:04:44. > :04:52.Matthew Richards is there for us tonight.
:04:52. > :04:57.Thanks very much. The party has finished the year. They have been
:04:57. > :05:05.plenty of people here are getting ready for the Paralympics. When you
:05:05. > :05:10.look back at the previous games, what are the highlight? Taking part
:05:10. > :05:15.and being a part of the Games is something so special. I think the
:05:15. > :05:20.medals came as a bit of a shock to me at the time. But it was
:05:20. > :05:24.absolutely truly amazing. You have been speaking to some of the young
:05:24. > :05:30.people today. What has been your message? I came here today to give
:05:30. > :05:38.a bit of inspiration to those guys out there who are starting at
:05:38. > :05:42.grassroots level. It is something where I started. I wanted to really
:05:42. > :05:47.put across to them that if they ever want to do something in their
:05:47. > :05:54.life and they want to achieve their goals, it can be done because at
:05:54. > :06:04.the end of the day, it was a dream come true for me. Excellent. Back
:06:04. > :06:04.
:06:04. > :06:13.to Cardiff. Let's talk to some of our Paralympian is now. You have a
:06:13. > :06:20.full house of medals. My gold is actually in the British Museum.
:06:20. > :06:25.People want to see the medals. won gold for the discus back in
:06:25. > :06:30.1984. You were injured at a funfair ride many years ago. How did this
:06:30. > :06:35.change your life around? 100 % change. I just sat around and went
:06:35. > :06:39.to the pub. I started getting into sport and I got selected for Wales
:06:39. > :06:42.to represent them in the national games and then it went on to the
:06:42. > :06:49.Paralympics, it totally chief mate -- changed my life. Everything I
:06:49. > :06:55.have done since has revolved around that. Take us back to the 1980s.
:06:55. > :07:05.The athletes are enjoying some great facilities in the village.
:07:05. > :07:12.stayed in a school. We were all sleeping on the floor. It was
:07:12. > :07:16.unreal but brilliant. It was an awesome time. David Roberts, 11
:07:16. > :07:19.time gold-medallist. Let's see one of those medals. You missed out on
:07:19. > :07:24.a place, unfortunately. How difficult is it going to be
:07:24. > :07:30.watching and are competing? It is going to be tagging on my heart
:07:30. > :07:34.strings a little bit. But I will be 100 % behind the team. It is a
:07:34. > :07:40.special occasion. I think they will delay fantastic job and all I can
:07:40. > :07:43.be is a fan. Football and in the Blue Square
:07:43. > :07:53.Premier league, Wrexham have beaten Tamworth 1-0, after an own goal
:07:53. > :07:54.
:07:54. > :07:57.Let's take a look at the weather now.
:07:57. > :08:03.It's been a wet and windy day across Wales, but we will see the
:08:03. > :08:06.wind and rain easing tonight. But the Met office still has a warning
:08:06. > :08:09.in place, mainly for the impact of the rain. It's persistent and slow
:08:09. > :08:14.moving, there's a risk of surface water flooding, especially further
:08:14. > :08:20.west. This evening, still a few pulses of heavy rain. They should
:08:20. > :08:22.ease eastwards, as that main band clears into the North Sea. Some
:08:22. > :08:24.sharp showers lingering, but generally turning clearer with
:08:24. > :08:30.winds easing overnight. Tomorrow's much more promising, largely dry
:08:30. > :08:35.and brighter with sunny spells. Variable amounts of cloud and any
:08:35. > :08:38.showers should be isolated. You'll be unlucky if you catch one. Winds
:08:38. > :08:40.picking up along Cardigan Bay, highs of 18 Celsius here, but
:08:40. > :08:42.generally feeling warmer 20 in Denbighshire. Then it's wet and