The best Olympic Closing Ceremonies of all time, ranked

While the opening ceremony is one of the most blockbuster events of any Olympic Games (and Paris’s proved to be no different), the closing ceremony still deserves our attention, so mark your calendars for Sunday August 11 at 8pm CEST to wave goodbye to this year’s Summer Games. 

Can’t wait til then? No worries – as you should be well aware, the Olympics have been going for quite some time, and that means there have been quite a few closing ceremonies. So, from jaw-droppingly dazzling fireworks displays to pulsing Samba music, the calming strums of John Lennon to the chaotic crescendo of Zorba’s dance, here are the most impressive closing ceremonies in Olympic History. 

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The most impressive Olympic Closing Ceremonies

7. Los Angeles 1984

Believe it or not, this was the first time athletes could attend the closing ceremony, and more than 6,000 marched into the stadium as part of the show. There was also a fantastic display of Buchaechum (traditional Korean fan dance) to hand over to Seoul for the 1988 Games. 

6. Barcelona 1992

A festival of planets, stars, fireworks and monsters? Hell yes. One of the main events in Barcelona’s closing ceremony was a stadium-wide display of flames, dancers and striking costumes, and it looked like quite the party. 

5. Rio 2016

Samba music, carnival dancers and huge smatterings of colour? There’s not much more we could ask for from Rio’s closing ceremony, and the rhythmic, pulsing show was one hell of a fun close to what was a fantastic Olympics. This is definitely the most vibrant ceremony on the list. 

4. Sydney 2000 

The Aussies really know how to do fireworks, don’t they? While Sydney’s closing ceremony was an all-round showstopper, the fireworks were undoubtedly the highlight. Firework artists from all five competing continents took part, and the display over the stadium was quite a sight. We can never forget that sparkly silver great white shark. 

3. London 2012

As the hopeful, comforting vocals of the late John Lennon hummed over London’s Olympic Stadium, it was a demonstration of a more understated, but still just as impactful, approach to the finale of the Olympics. It’s definitely one of our faves. 

2. Beijing 2008

Beijing’s opening ceremony was our favourite of all time, but the year of rehearsals that went into the 2008 Olympics send-off certainly paid off, too. A sea of vibrantly-dressed dancers performing impeccably in sync choreography was striking. 

1. Athens 2004

Given the Olympics were born out of Ancient Greece, it’s hardly surprising that Athens knows how to close them with a bang. The ceremony was attended by 70,000 people, and featured lots of nods to traditional music, dancing, and the ancient empire. 

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