After 16 days of the Olympic competition, the flame has been snuffed in Tokyo. Now it’s time to say goodbye to the host nation Japan. The Japanese celebrated their music and culture with several beautiful Closing Ceremony performances, and the president of the Japanese Olympic Committee and the IOC President delivered their closing speeches to end the Games.
Here’s all the action from the Tokyo Closing Ceremony:
Symbolic close to a historic game
The Olympic Flame has been extinguished in Tokyo, signaling the official end of these Olympics. After the flame went out, the word “ARIGATO,” which means “thank you” in Japanese, appeared on the screens in the stadium. The font used was the same as the one used to spell out “SAYONARA” on the screens at the end of the 1964 Games. Both words were shown in Romaji, which is the rominized alphabet for the Japanese language as opposed to Japanese characters. Fifty-seven years after the first Summer Olympics in Japan, this display shows one final connection with the first Tokyo Olympics.
France looks ahead to Paris 2024 after flag handover
The French segment began with the national anthem and featured musicians playing throughout Paris, as well as a few notes from French astronaut Thomas Pesquet, who was playing his saxophone from the International Space Station. French aerial patrol fly over the fan village of The Trocadero set in front of The Eiffel Tower, in Paris on Aug. 8, 2021 upon the transmission of the closing ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Host city Baton passed from Tokyo to Paris
The traditional handover of the Olympic flag took place at the closing ceremony. Yuriko Koike, governor of Tokyo, passed the Olympic flag to IOC president Thomas Bach, who then handed it over to Anne Hidalgo, the mayor of Paris. Paris will host the Olympics in 2024.
Traditional dances represent Japan’s past and present
Organizers celebrated different regions of Japan with a montage of four traditional dances including the Ainu traditional dance from Hokkaido, Ryukyu Eisa from the Okinawa Prefecture, Nishimonai Bon Odori from the Akita Prefecture and Gujo Odori from the Gifu Prefecture. The segment culminated in a live performance in the Olympic Stadium of the Tokyo Ondo, a dance born in modern times.
Molly Seidel gets her bronze medal at closing ceremony
At the Closing Ceremony, medals are always awarded for one event. This year, for the first time, medals are awarded for both the men’s and women’s marathon, a nod to Japan’s commitment to gender inclusiveness during this Olympics. American Molly Seidel, who won bronze, gets a moment in front of the world. The project marked the first time in Olympics history where a host country included its citizens in the production of medals and used recycled materials to make awards for the Games.
‘All Tokyoites’ give athletes a taste of Tokyo
The Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra provided the soundtrack to a segment designed to let athletes who have been cooped up in quarantine experience Tokyo. Ska music originated in Jamaica in the 1950s, a precursor to reggae, but it’s been big in Japan for decades, and the Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra has been one of the most popular Japanese ska bands since it was formed in the 1980s.
Epic light show displays Olympic rings
After the athletes finished entering the stadium, a light show culminated in the display of the Olympic rings.
Team USA enters stadium for closing ceremony
Thirty-two minutes into the parade, the American team entered the stadium. But you didn’t see every member of Team USA there many big-name stars have already returned to the United States, as COVID protocol required athletes to depart Olympic Village within 48 hours of their final competition.
Athletes parade into closing ceremony
Thousands of athletes from across the world paraded into the closing ceremony. Over 4,500 athletes representing 206 countries will process in, according to Tokyo organizers, Many athletes were seen waving their national flags or capturing the moment with videos. Each nation put their own twist on the entrance, including Americans wearing all white, Canadians rocking custom jean jackets and plenty of athletes with medals around their necks.
Each country chooses its own flag bearer
Athletes carry their nations’ flags to the field of play during the closing ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo. Once the flags are all in the stadium, athletes from all countries will enter together, en masse, in no particular order a stark difference from the Opening Ceremony, when each athletes enter with their countrymen.
