Closing ceremony brings upbeat end to games -- Olympics that began with luger’s death wraps up with happy celebration

story by NBC Sports news services

photos by Toshifumi Kitamura/AFP/Getty Images

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - An Olympics that began with the death of a luger ended Sunday with an exuberant celebration of Canada — reflecting a determined comeback by the host country's organizers and athletes.

A festive crowd of 60,000 jammed into BC Place Stadium for the closing ceremony, many of them Canadians abuzz over the overtime victory by their men's hockey team earlier in the day to give the host nation a Winter Olympics record of 14 gold medals.

The ceremony started with a tongue-in-cheek moment, as a clown raised the fourth arm of the cauldron, which had failed to come up during the opening ceremony. Catriona LeMay Doan, who was unable to light her portion of the cauldron in the opener, came out to light the torch for the finale.

The gaiety contrasted sharply with the moment of silence at the opening ceremony Feb. 12 for Nodar Kumaritashvili, the 21-year-old luger killed in a horrific training-run crash on the sliding track in Whistler just hours before that ceremony.

"The games started in very difficult conditions. ... No one will forget that," International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge said before the closing. "However, you have to be fair to the organizers, you have to be fair to the Canadians, and you have to be fair to athletes and judge the games on their own merit — without forgetting what happened before."

Canadian officials ensured there was some poignancy at the closing ceremony as well, selecting figure skater Joannie Rochette as their flagbearer. Her mother died of a heart attack hours after arriving in Vancouver last weekend, but Rochette chose to carry on and won a bronze medal, inspiring her teammates and fans around the world.

"Yes, it's been a tough week for me," she said before the ceremony. "But I walk tonight into that stadium with a big smile on my face. ... I accomplished my goals, and I want to celebrate with my teammates."

The U.S. flagbearer was Bill Demong, a veteran of four Olympics who won a gold and silver medal in Nordic combined.

The athletes streamed in together, with no march of nations.

There were plenty of reasons for Canada and the United States to celebrate. The U.S. won 37 medals overall — the most ever for any nation in a Winter Olympics.

Canada, after a slow start, set a Winter Games record with 14 golds and sparked public enthusiasm in Vancouver that veterans of multiple Olympics described as unsurpassed.