Rio Paralympics to cut costs amid cash crunch, but says Games to go ahead

International Paralympic Committee (IPC) President Philip Craven speaks during a news conference in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil August 7, 2016 in this still image taken from video. REUTERS/via Reuters TV

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - The Rio de Janeiro Paralympics will cut costs as ticket sales languish and organisers struggle for cash, but the Games will go ahead with all 22 sports as planned, the president of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) said on Friday.

The event, due to start on Sept. 7, will also lack the crowds that flocked to the stadiums in Beijing in 2008 or London four years later, with only 12 percent of tickets sold, he said.