As an example he reflected upon the Opening Ceremony for the Paralympics, full details of which have yet to be finalised, praising the bold move of the Paris 2024 organisers, under the Organising Committee President Tony Estanguet, to hold it, like its Olympic counterpart, outdoors and in an iconic setting.

While the Olympic Opening Ceremony will take place along a six-kilometres stretch of the River Seine, with a current estimate of 600,000 spectators being able to watch for free, the Paralympic version is due to involve a parade of athletes down the Champs-Élysées to the Place de la Concorde, where the main ceremonial action will take place.

"Something that has been a pleasure in terms of working with Tony and his team is that sometimes they are even more revolutionary than we are," Parsons said.

"At times they really push us to take some risks, that we end up taking. 

"It is a great thing to be working with an Organising Committee that helps us to push the limits of previous editions of the Games and to do things differently.

"The main example is the Opening Ceremony. 

"To have that outside of a stadium. 

"Many of our athletes have mobility issues, so it is a case of working out how to organise this from a logistical perspective. 

"And also to assess what will this mean for the Paralympic Movement?

"How many people will engage with the Ceremony, not only in Paris. 

"This is where the Organising Committee really pushed us, by saying how by having a different approach people around the world, via TV or online, how they will perceive us differently.

"This came from the Organising Committee. 

"They pushed us. 

"And at the beginning we were a little bit, I wouldn’t say afraid, but we were reluctant. 

"We were like ‘whoah, whoah, whoah!’ 

"But then we adjusted a few things and I think we have a great concept.

"And I can’t wait to be there."

Whether Russian and Belarusian athletes will also be there remains a moot point.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) recommended their suspension last year shortly after the invasion of Ukraine but has since shifted to a position where it is encouraging nations and International Federations to consider a return under "neutral" colours.

Four days after the IOC recommendation last March, the IPC went the other way, announcing that Russian and Belarusian athletes would be able to compete in the 2022 Winter Paralympic Games in Beijing, albeit under the Paralympic flag and without being included in the medals table.

But then the IPC announced that Russian and Belarusian athletes would not be allowed to compete at Beijing 2022 after multiple National Paralympic Committees threatened a boycott.

Parsons admitted at the time nations were "likely to withdraw" if the two teams were not banned, warning there would not be a "viable Games".

On November 16 last year the Russian and Belarus Paralympic Committees were suspended by the IPC.

After revealing to insidethegames last week that it was "a possibility" his organisation and the IOC could have different policies in force at Paris 2024 regarding Russian participation, Parsons added: "We took a decision at the General Assembly last November to suspend Russian and Belarusian athletes. 

"Only a new General Assembly can change that.

"We will have a General Assembly in late September this year.  

"According to our constitution we need to assess every suspension. 

"We will take a decision, if it is to renew the suspension, if it is to lift the suspension, we will see. 

"That is in the hand of the membership."

Parsons conceded that the IPC were at the mercy of how events unfolded in Ukraine.

"But of course we can always call for an EGA (Extraordinary General Assembly) to change things depending on how the situation evolves in Ukraine. 

"We have to be ready for different scenarios - if, say, something happened early next year, whether there is a ceasefire or a truce or whatever.

"At the General Assembly we could have many National Paralympic Committees submitting different motions, which we would of course have to discuss and vote on.

“We have to see if someone brings a motion that talks specifically about the Paris 2024 Games, because the current decision is not about the Paris Paralympic Games 2024 - the Russians and Belarusians are suspended as members.

"So we have to wait and see what will be the motions, and to see if something changes at a geopolitical level and the war comes to an end. 

"Then we could make a new decision afterwards.

“My point is that the General Assembly is not the final, final decision. 

"We can call an EGA any time.

"In an EGA we, as a Board, can have a very specific agenda and it’s different."

Regarding the possibility of operating a different policy from the IOC over the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes at Paris 2024, Parsons added: “We work very closely with the IOC.

"The IOC is our main partner and we have signed many agreements with them since 2001.

"But that having been said we have governing structures that are different and sometimes we will make different decisions.

"Even within the Olympic Movement it would seem that some International Federations are now fully following the recent IOC recommendation [to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate as 'neutrals']; some others are not.

"So I think it’s part of democracy, part of the world we live in.

"The recommendation of the IOC does not necessarily apply to the Paralympic Games.

"We make our own decisions."

Since he took over his position as IPC President from Sir Philip Craven in 2017, Parsons has said that for every edition of a Winter or Summer Paralympics there has been a "different vision."

For the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics the top priority was to change perceptions in Japan about disabled people. 

For the Paris 2024 Paralympics much of the discussion has been about improving accessibility for disabled people in transport in and around the capital.

Asked to assess the Paris 2024 vision now, Parsons responded: "I have been President over all this journey for Paris 2024. 

"As you know we change a little bit how we see things at the IPC. 

"We were always adamant that we were only a sport event, a high-performance sport event.

"And we changed, to really understand that the Paralympic Games is a platform and the Paralympic Movement is a platform - to influence and make it a more inclusive world.

"And not only for the 4,400 athletes that we will have competing in Paris but the 1.2 billion with disability.

"In some way we were not very much aligned with the wider world of persons with a disability.

"But now we have the aspiration to really change the world, using Paralympic sport as a vehicle and the Games as a platform.

"One of the things I like about working with Tony and his team is that they have embraced that. 

"And the way they have embraced that is to say ‘Look, we will do – and it was very simple for them – we will do the same, Olympics and Paralympics for us is the same.’

"So you can see that reflected in the logos behind Tony, a reflection of the approach coming from the Organising Committee.

"They have said, ‘To us there is no difference. 

"'We are talking about one big event. 

"'We will treat the Olympics and Paralympics the same. 

"'We know your goals are changing. 

"'Not only how persons with disability are perceived in Paris or France.'

"And there is still some way to go there - not like in Japan of course - but still there is some way to go, as in any other country around the world."

Parsons believes the bold approach of Paris 2024 will pay dividends.

“We are working with an Organising Committee that is not afraid of trying new things – the Opening Ceremony being an excellent example of that," he said.

"And we are very proud of that…

“There are so many projects. 

"For example the event last week, the Olympic and Paralympic Week. 

"One million kids, and the main theme was inclusion. 

"You are dealing with the future decision-makers of France, of Paris. 

"It was a nationwide project.

“So these kids, they are being introduced to the values of inclusion, and through the Paralympic Movement they can understand in a personal way disability. 

"And the message has been very clear about inclusion.

“That’s the beauty of this project. 

"You have a Games, you have seven years of preparation, so many opportunities that are being taken by the Organising Committee, by the French Paralympic Committee. 

"I see a great legacy from the Games in Paris."

As soon as Paris was awarded the Paralympics, a potential major problem was identified immediately.

“When it comes to transport, I think it is no secret to say that when the journey started we had a big ambition to make big changes - and sometimes you have to control some of the expectations," said Parsons.

"The Paralympic Games do not change everything in the culture, in the city, in any part of the world. 

"The Games are just not there yet. 

"At the Olympics they don’t change everything for every city.

"So that was the mission of having the whole metro system in Paris accessible. Which just, from a cost point of view, is just not feasible. 

"It’s impossible to do it.

“And there are some regulations in France, and laws, that make it maybe more complicated.

"But I think the positive side of that is that the City of Paris has invested €125 million (£111 million/$137 million) in making the city more accessible.

"And to give you a perspective - Beijing 2008 was always the benchmark, because they spent a very similar amount on making their city accessible, but over the course of seven years. Paris is going to do that in the next three years.

“I think this is a very big push. 

"So for the moment lets concentrate on making - it’s not underground, but for the moment let’s concentrate on making the on-ground transportation in Paris accessible. 

"We are talking about making 100 per cent of the key routes accessible. 

"This is huge.”

Regarding the collaboration so far, Estanguet echoed Parsons’ sentiments.

"It has been so far a fantastic journey that we have shared together, trying every day to conceive and create the most impactful Paralympic Games edition in Paris 2024," he said.

"I guess it’s always the approach to try and ensure that the next edition of the Games will be the most successful and impactful and honestly in my position it’s great to work with the IPC trying to find ways of doing things a little bit differently.

"It’s right to say that we assume the success will be met also if we are able to be quite independent in the way we see and imagine what should be the best in 2024 to celebrate Paralympics and Para-sport in Paris.

"So we try to be as ambitious as possible. 

"The first point for me, as Andrew was saying, was the logo. It has to start with the identity and it was important for us to demonstrate that for this team I have the honour to lead there will be the same ambition for the two Games and that we really want the best for both.

"The second part was about the competition venues and having the best locations of France to celebrate athletes, Paralympians, at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, in the Chateau of Versailles, and Les Invalides, and Le Grand Palais.

"I think it’s very important for us to offer the best of France to celebrate the Paralympic Games. 

"Why? Because again the strategy has two parts.

"The first is to offer the best visibility of the Paris Paralympic Games by having the most ambitious concept and the best in terms of Ceremonies, in terms of competitions, in terms of level of services. 

"So that is the visibility we want to offer to the Paralympic Games in terms of attractiveness.

"And the second part is how we will use the power of this visibility to open the mindset and open the Paralympics to the maximum number of people.

"We started with the project with schools, and the week last week was very powerful and encouraging, having 1.2 million of kids around the country participating in Para-sport, with many of them discovering the Paralympic Games for the first time.

"And just accepting to have the dialogue around 'Okay, what is this event, why should we celebrate it, and why finally we don’t care about the disability of people we just want to look at what they are able to achieve in terms of success and performances.'

"So honestly the mindset can change very fast with the power of the Games and sport. 

"And we already feel it in France. 

"That’s why we will have those two elements."

Estanguet is determined to stage an event that will change the mindset of French society.

“On one side it’s really to push the limits in terms of celebration, to have the most ambitious concept," he said.

"The second part is how we will use this power to change the mindset and then to change the behaviours of people in terms of transport, in terms of physical activity, in terms of inclusion.

“We firmly believe the first Paralympics to be held in France will have a strong legacy for French people. 

"It’s too early to be able to assess this legacy, but it’s really encouraging to feel to feel that the stakeholders of Paris 2024 are engaged. 

"For the private sponsors it is important to demonstrate that the Paralympics are a strong vehicle to change our society.

"So everything is in place, we still have a lot to do but we are right on the level of ambition and now we need to push to make sure that the delivery will achieve good satisfaction."

Asked about the symbolism of a Paralympics Opening Ceremony in the centre of Paris, Estanguet added: 

"For us the Opening Ceremony is a key moment in the success of the Games, and for us it was really important that from the start of the Games people begin to understand that this edition of the Games will be different.

"So hosting the Paralympics Opening Ceremony in the heart of Paris, celebrating the athletes with a mix of free access for people along the Champs-Élysées to have access to welcome the athletes from all around the world, and to have the other part within the Place de la Concorde, the show and the celebration of the opening for the rest of the spectators, is for us a fantastic tool to offer the best visibility of the Paralympic Games.

"We strongly believe that the power the Games are first in terms of their celebration and to host this in one of the best locations in Paris is really important.  

"We speak about 65,000 spectators that will have the opportunity to share this fantastic moment."