The closing ceremony of the Olympic Winter Games was held in Beijing

The closing ceremony of the Winter Olympics took place on Sunday at the National Stadium in Beijing, the first city to host the Summer and Winter Games.

While the opening ceremony coincided with the first days of the Chinese New Year, the closing ceremony almost coincided with the traditional Lantern Festival, which marks the end of the New Year celebrations. Many of the spectators in the stands held Chinese lanterns. The age-old tradition of lighting them on holidays was not lost on the Olympics – children who took part in the ceremony ran onto the arena with glowing lanterns in the form of snowflakes, then a sled made in the form of the animals of the Chinese zodiac entered the stadium.

Traditionally, one of the central events of the ceremony was the parade of athletes from participating countries, who marched into the stadium to “Ode to Joy” by Beethoven. After the parade, there was an awards ceremony for the winners of the Olympic women’s and men’s marathon ski races.