The preparations are in full swing, the stages are being assembled and the guests are excitedly awaiting the biggest celebration in the history of Paralympic sport. There are now only 1,000 days until the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. Dressed up for the occasion, some of the Brazilian athletes hoping to shine on home soil celebrated another year of achievements at the Brazilian Paralympic Awards in Rio on Wednesday night (11 December).

The event, orgainsed by the Brazilian Paralympic Committee, was also attended by the International Paralympic Committee President, Sir Philip Craven. And the Briton is clearly looking forward to the next edition of the Games, which the IPC has already said will be the biggest yet in terms of athletes and sports.

“With it's unique spirit and sense of celebration, Rio and Brazil is tailor made to host the Games,” said Craven. “It will have its own distinct flavour and I believe Rio will host amazing Games. When the Rio bid team showed the map of the world, demonstrating that South America had never had the Games before, that was it for me: I was convinced they should be held here."

The opportunity to compete at home is a huge motivation for Brazilian athletes. This year they have shown again that they are a force to be reckoned with. And, after the Brazilian Paralympic Award winners were announced, some of the country's biggest stars revealed their expectations for the 2016 Games.

Winner of 15 Paralympic medals (10 gold), Daniel Dias is a living legend in Paralympic swimming. This year he won six golds at the IPC Swimming World Championships in Montreal, earning him the Best Male Athlete award on Wednesday. He said: “I've had some good moments in sport so far, but I have to prepare to the maximum so I can perform at home even better than in previous Games.”

The winner of the Best Female Athlete award, swimmer Susana Schnarndorf,  took gold in the 100m breaststroke (SB6) and bronze in the 400m freestyle (S6) at the world championships in Montreal. She said: “We're starting a cycle of super effort aiming at the Rio Games. I'm totally focused, it's 1,000 days of training without a holiday for my goal: a gold medal in Rio.”

Newcomer Verônica Hipólito won two medals in the T38 category at the 2013 IPC Athletics World Championships in Lyon: gold in the 200m and silver in the 100m, and was recognised as Best Revelation on Wednesday night. She is aiming for three golds in 2016 by adding the long jump, and said: “Up to this year I trained four times a week, but next year I will double my hours, because my rival, Sophie Hahn, of Great Britain, already started, so I need to go after her!”

Alan Fonteles Oliveira is the current star of Paralympic athletics and has spent this year perfecting his performance. After bursting onto the world scene at the London 2012 Games, he won the 100m, 200m and 400m and set a 200m world record in the T43 category in Lyon. “Rio 2016 will be sensational, it will be the highpoint of my career,” he said. “Although it appears a lot, 1,000 days for an athlete passes quickly."

Known as the fastest blind woman runner in the world, Terezinha Guilhermina also shined at the World Championships in Lyon this year and added three more gold medals to her collection. She is preparing for the climax of her career in 2016. “I just finished university and all my energies are now dedicated to Rio 2016, which will be the most beautiful and incredible party of all,” she said.

Lyon 2013 also marked a special moment in the career of Odair dos Santos. The runner took gold in the 800m, 1500m and 5000m and said he is looking forward to home advantage in 2016: “Brazilian warmth is incomparable and our athletes will have something special up their sleeve: the affection of our people.”

Starting on 7 September 2016, the Rio Paralympic Games will last 12 days and bring together about 4,350 athletes from 164 countries, competing in 22 sports. Fans from across the world will meet in the four competition regions – Barra, Deodoro, Copacabana and Maracanã – and media from five continents will turn the event into a global celebration. It's set to be the biggest Paralympic party of all time.