Watch the 2022 Winter Paralympics opening ceremony in Beijing

The world was a different place when the 2022 Beijing Olympics came to an end on February 20.

On Friday, the Paralympics will take centre stage amid a war in Ukraine that began days after the Olympics ended.

Live coverage of the opening ceremony at the National Indoor Stadium in Beijing begins on Friday at 7:30 p.m. local time (6:30 a.m. ET) on CBCSports.ca, the CBC Sports app and CBC Gem. Check your local listings for broadcast times in your area.

The broadcast will also be presented in described video and American Sign Language.

Team Canada, which captured eight gold medals, four silver and 16 bronze at PyeongChang 2018, will be led by flag-bearers Ina Forrest and Greg Westlake.

Heading to his fifth Paralympics, the 35-year-old Westlake, of Oakville, Ont., has helped the Canadian Para men's hockey team earn all three medal colours with gold at Torino 2006, silver in Pyeongchang and bronze in Sochi.

Team Canada is comprised of 49 athletes, including four guides, for the Beijing Paralympics. The list features 25 medallists and 19 rookies.

The Games will run from March 4-13.