PARIS — With one last big exhale from French swimmer Léon Marchand, the Olympic flame in Paris is out.
The closing ceremony on Sunday drew the curtain on a historic two-plus week stretch of Olympic competition.
And historic it was. The Summer Games made novel use of the country’s iconic venues (the Eiffel Tower, Grand Palais and The Palace of Versailles to name just a few). Meanwhile, American swimmer Katie Ledecky, who added four more medals to her overall total of 14, became the most decorated female Olympian, while Marchand showed the world he’s swimming’s next big thing. U.S. gymnasts, led by Simone Biles, got their redemption, and St. Lucia won its first ever medal — in the fastest track event no less.
The return of crowds boost Olympic spirit
More than 71,000 spectators packed into Stade de France, the country’s national stadium located north of Paris, for the closing bash for the first Olympics since COVID restrictions were completely lifted. The absence of any COVID protocols allowed athletes to enjoy the full energy of the crowd, but there were also infections.
The venue had transformed from a site of Olympic track and rugby events into a concert hall.
The program kicked off on a solemn note, with French singer Zaho de Sagazan, and a choir dressed in all black, gathered round the cauldron singing “Sous le ciel de Paris.” The tempo picked up with a lively orchestral set inside the stadium, where the traditional entrance of the flags and the parade of athletes from 205 delegations marched along a silver-colored stage of disjointed, shard-shaped platforms.
For the U.S., Katie Ledecky and rower Nick Mead were among the circle of flag bearers, while bronze-medalist pole vaulter Emmanouil Karalis and artistic swimmer Evangelia Platanioti were seen waving the Greece flag. Team USA and Team China were seen standing next to each other, both singing along to “We Are The Champions” moments after the countries had tied in the gold medal count.
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The festivities also included a medal ceremony for the top finishers of the women’s marathon that concluded earlier in the day. It was the first time the women’s race has closed the Olympic Games. Gold medalist Dutch runner Sifan Hassan took the top of the podium after winning with an Olympic record time of 2:22:55. That’s after already clinching two bronze medals in both the 5,000- and 10,000-meter race to run a total of 38 miles.
The moment was a nod to organizers’ goal of reaching full gender parity for the Paris Games. At the same time, it struck a dissonant chord alongside a Games that saw the targeting of female Algerian boxer Imane Khelif over her gender. In Paris, buoyed by fan support that outshouted the online attacks she faced, she went on to win gold. That wasn’t the only controversy. After a huge investment in cleaning up the Seine, the question of the waters’ daily safety kept swimmers on their toes.
The volunteers who helped the Paris Games run were also
