The gigantic Stade de France resembled a concert hall hosting a party to celebrate the fortnight of sporting excellence as a breathtaking closing ceremony brought the curtains down on the Paris Olympics with a spectacular show, passing on the baton to Los Angeles for the next edition.
International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach said: «These were sensational Olympic Games from start to finish. The Games showed us what greatness we humans are capable of. You embraced each other, you respect each other even if your countries were divided by war and conflict. Thanking you for making believe in a better world for everyone.»
Bach also said that the Olympic Games «can’t create peace but it can create a culture of peace that can inspire the world».
There were speculations of Hollywood star Tom Cruise making an appearance and he didn’t disappoint as he descended from the top of the stadium to the Mission Impossible theme song, shook hands with the athletes on his way to the stage, took the Olympic flag from star gymnast Simone Biles, and carried it on a bike through Paris streets to a cargo plane ready to take off for Los Angeles.
A cyclist then took the flag to four-time Olympic gold medallist track legend Michael Johnson, who jogged through the streets of LA and handed it over to skateboarding legend Jagger Eaton at the iconic Venice Beach.
Earlier, the two-hour-long show, created by Thomas Jolly, began with a musical ode to the Games’ host city, with French singer Zaho de Sagazan singing the famous ‘Sous le ciel de Paris’, which became a symbol of Paris for the world.
The flag-bearers of each of the 205 delegations then entered the gigantic Stade de France and assembled on a stage in the centre of the stadium — symbolically representing a planisphere — even as the athletes waved flags, blew kisses, clicked photographs and mingled with each other.
