This is how the closing ceremony took place

• The closing ceremony, entitled Recordswas carried out by the same artistic team as the opening ceremony, headed by artistic director Thomas Jolly

The venue for the closing ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games on 11 August was the iconic Stade de France in Saint Denis, with a capacity of 80,000 spectators.

The ceremony had its first sequence in the Tuileries Garden with the singing of the theme “Under the Sky of Paris”.

The closing ceremony, entitled Recordswas carried out by the same artistic team as the opening ceremony, headed by artistic director Thomas Jolly.

French swimmer Leon Marchand appeared in the garden to extinguish the Olympic cauldron and take it to the stadium.

Photo: EFE/EPA/Tolga Akmen / POOL

The spectacle began with the entrance of the athletes from the participating countries into the Stade de France, which was transformed into a gigantic events hall to watch the athletes carrying their flags.

The final medals were then awarded to the marathon runners who competed on 11 August. In this category, athlete Sifan Hassan from the Netherlands took home the gold, while Tigst Aseffa from Ethiopia took home the silver and Hellen Obiri from Kenya took home the bronze.

Photo: EFE/EPA/MAST IRHAM

Start of the show at the Paris 2024 Olympics

With the stage in darkness, shrouded in a kind of fog, the “golden traveller” was seen descending from above to meet other characters, as in a sort of metaphor for the origins of the Olympic Games in Greece.

Part of the show also took place in the air, accompanied by lighting effects, which led spectators to succumb to the scenic narration of the story.

Photo: EFE/EPA/MAST IRHAM

Then, from the stage floor emerged the goddess Nike, the sculpture of the Winged Victory of Samothrace found in the Louvre Museum in Paris, to symbolize the start of the Olympic Games in the world.

Dozens of artists, acrobats and dancers then joined in with a theatrical performance to recreate the various sporting disciplines.

The first to add a musical touch to the show were the members of the French indie rock band Phoenix, who performed several of their hits.

At the end of the performance, vocalist Thomas Croquet lunged towards the group of athletes to be carried at the end of their performance.

Photo: EFE/ Miguel Toña

The Vampire Weekend, Yseult, Kavinsky, Air and Cambodian rapper VannDa also performed for the performance, which lasted around 30 minutes.

Closing ceremony

To close the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, the President of the Paris 2024 Olympic Organising Committee, Tony Estanguet, together with his counterpart from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, presented the athletes representing each continent.

Estanguet gave a speech to highlight the sporting event organized by the French city to welcome more than 10,000 athletes from around the world.

Photo: EFE/EPA/CHRISTOPHE PETIT TESSON

“Paris became a party and France was reunited to become Olympic. The millions of spectators, the passion of the athletes, every stage, every medal became a national emotion,” said the president of the Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games.

Thomas Bach then took the floor to thank the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, the other authorities, members of the Olympic committees and especially the participating athletes.

“Thank you for making us dream, for making us believe in a better world for everyone. We know that the Olympics cannot create peace, but they can create a culture that inspires the world,” said the IOC President.

Photo: EFE/EPA/MAST IRHAM

The closing ceremony began with the Olympic anthem in Greek and the presentation of the flag to the Mayor of Los Angeles (California, United States), Karen Bass, as this city will host the next Olympic Games.

The Paris 2024 Olympic Games came to a close with the performance of the American anthem by singer HER and the surprise appearance of actor Tom Cruise, who starred in a stunt by jumping from a height to carry the Olympic flag.

Photo: EFE/ Julio Muñoz

Cruise was then seen racing through the streets of Paris on a motorbike until he reached an airport and boarded a plane, parachuting and landing near the Hollywood sign in Los Angeles, where he handed over the flag to several American athletes.

The entire scene took place with a musical background by the band Red Hot Chili Peppers, who appeared on a beach stage in California accompanied by BIllie Eilish, Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre, who performed some of their hits in front of dozens of fans.

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