Joe McConnell
Tom Cruise brought a touch of Hollywood glamour to the conclusion of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, with a star-studded closing ceremony that marked the handover of the event’s hosting duties to Los Angeles for 2028.
With Los Angeles banking on one of its main selling points – Hollywood glitz – Cruise made a cameo appearance, abseiling from the roof of the Stade de France to the tune of Mission Impossible.
Californians Billie Eilish, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Snoop Dogg and Dr Dre also performed via video link from Long Beach in Los Angeles, while five-time Grammy Award-winning artist HER sang the US national anthem from inside the stadium.
French swimmer Leon Marchant, the most decorated athlete of the Games with four golds and a bronze in the pool, also took part in the ceremony, collecting the Olympic flame from the Tuileries Gardens in Paris and carrying it to the arena to be officially extinguished.
Yee and Page chosen as GB flag bearers
Also in attendance were Team GB athletes, including Tom Daley, Helen Glover and Caden Cunningham, wearing Hawaiian-style shirts featuring the emblems of all the nations of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Vscek Olympics correspondents Geraint Hughes and Miriam Walker-Khan reflect on Team GB’s success, the biggest news stories and a look ahead to LA 2028.
Among the GB athletes chosen as flag bearers were men’s triathlon winner Alex Yee and ski jump gold medallist Bryony Page, two of our 14 gold medal winners at the Games. Team GB won 65 medals in total, one more than the 64 they achieved in Tokyo three years ago.
Yee said of the honour: “There have been so many incredible performances over the last couple of weeks from Team GB, so to be chosen as someone who has represented Team GB well and done the country proud is really special.”
Added page: “When I got the call to tell me, I couldn’t believe it. It’s really an honor. For a sport like trampolining, which is quite niche, it’s really incredible.
“It’s a very emotional and proud moment… it’s the culmination of an incredible experience.”
The British team’s medal haul in the last four Olympics
Hassan wears hijab as she collects marathon gold
At the beginning of the closing ceremony, one last medal was awarded: Dutch Sifan Hassan collected her gold in the women’s marathon wearing a hijab.
France is a country that does not allow its athletes to wear the veil.
In his speech at the closing ceremony, Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee, wanted to underline how the Olympics can create a culture of peace.
“Despite all the tensions in our world, you have come here from all 206 National Olympic Committees and the IOC Refugee Olympic Team, to make the City of Light shine brighter than ever,” he said.
“Your performances have been incredible. You have challenged each other ferociously. Each competition was on the edge of perfection. Each performance has inspired excitement around the world. You have shown us what greatness we humans are capable of.
“We know that the Olympic Games cannot create peace. But the Olympic Games can create a culture of peace that inspires the world. That is why we invite everyone who shares this Olympic spirit: let us live this culture of peace every single day.”
The “Golden Voyager” helps lift the Olympic rings
In other highlights of the closing ceremony, organizers took an artistic approach to telling the story of the Olympics during a segment of the show, in which a “golden traveler” took the stage wearing an elaborate gold costume.
After the golden traveler was lowered from the roof onto the stage, a hooded individual handed him a Greek flag, symbolizing the ancient origin of the Games.
The traveler was then joined on stage by acrobats dressed as alien creatures who helped him uncover the Olympic rings, which were then lifted into the air from the stadium floor.
Police Arrest Man Who Climbs Eiffel Tower Before Closing Ceremony
Hours before the closing ceremony of the Olympics, French police evacuated the area around the Eiffel Tower after a man was seen climbing the Parisian landmark.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
The area around the Eiffel Tower has been evacuated after a man climbed the Paris landmark hours before the Olympic closing ceremony.
Police escorted visitors away from the area around 3 p.m. Some visitors who had been briefly locked on the second floor were allowed to leave about 30 minutes later.
“An individual began climbing the Eiffel Tower at 2:45 p.m., police intervened and the man was arrested,” a Paris police official told The Associated Press.
The Eiffel Tower was the centrepiece of the opening ceremony, with Celine Dion serenading the city from one of its vantage points, but did not take part in the closing ceremony.
From August, Vscek+ will be integrated into Sky TV, the NOW streaming service and the Vscek app, giving Vscek customers access to over 50 percent more live sport this year at no extra cost. Stream the new EFL season, Test cricket and more top sports with NOW.
