Late on Sunday, February 22, the Closing Ceremony of the 2026 Winter Olympic Games took place at the historic Arena di Verona (named the Olympic Arena in Verona for the duration of the Games).
The grand event marking the end of the Games brought together music, art, and sports.
The choice of the Arena di Verona for the Closing Ceremony is not accidental. This iconic amphitheater embodies Italy's rich cultural heritage. Here, the glorious past of this place meets the future of sports, showcasing Italian heritage as the stage for the Closing Ceremony of the Olympic Games and for the Opening Ceremony of the Paralympic Games.
The Closing Ceremony of the Games consisted of an official part and a show. During the official part, there was a parade featuring the flags of the participating countries and a procession of athletes, the lowering of the Olympic flag, and its handover to the next hosts of the Winter Games, which will take place in 2030 in the French Alps, as well as the extinguishing of the Olympic flame.
As reported by bb.lv, the flag bearers for the Latvian team at the Closing Ceremony of the Olympic Games were short track speed skater Roberts Kruzbergs and skier Patricia Aiduka.
The Closing Ceremony featured performances by Verona native, renowned rapper Achille Lauro, Italian dance music icon DJ Gabry Ponte, as well as the orchestra and choir of the Arena di Verona Foundation.
Norway won the medal tally for the fourth consecutive time (18 gold, 12 silver, and 11 bronze medals) at the 25th Winter Olympic Games in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo. This is a record for the number of gold medals and the total number of awards (41).
In second place in the table is the USA (12 gold, 12 silver, and 9 bronze medals), and in third place is the Netherlands (10, 7, 3). The hosts of the Olympics, the Italians, are in fourth place (10, 6, 14).
