The 2026 Winter Olympic Games drew to a conclusion Sunday with a celebration of the athletic feats achieved over the past two weeks across northern Italy.
The Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics was the first to officially feature the names of two host cities in the title and to have two Olympic cauldrons. The competition itself was even more widespread.
Milan, the financial capital of Italy that hosted all skating events, and Cortina d'Ampezzo, which held curling and some snow events, are about 260 kilometers apart. In between, there were two other clusters of venues, one for alpine skiing and snowboarding, and another for ski jumping and cross-country skiing.
Italy hosted some 2,900 athletes from 92 countries over an area of about 22,000 square kilometers -- making this the most spread-out Olympics ever, winter or summer.
Staying true to the theme, the closing ceremony was held in Verona, 140 km east of Milan. Verona did not host any competitions during the Olympics.
The closing ceremony at Verona Olympic Arena was produced under the title "Beauty in Action." It was a tribute to the beauty of the host country and also an homage to the beauty of athletic performances.
Athletes marched into the arena to the tune of classic film soundtracks and Italian pop songs. And the medalists from the final event of this Olympics, the men's and women's 50km class mass start in cross-country skiing, were feted in the victory ceremony in Verona.
The tradition of awarding the final Olympic event during the closing ceremony began at the 2004 Athens Summer Olympics.
After the medalists were honored, Won Yun-jong, newly elected as a member of the Athletes' Commission of the International Olympic Committee during the Olympics, was introduced to a rousing ovation at the arena.
Toward the end of the closing ceremony, the Olympic flag was handed over to the next host of the Winter Olympics, the French Alps.
South Korea sent 71 athletes in six sports, with a goal of winning at least three gold medals -- one more than at the 2022 Beijing Winter Games.
The country met the target on the number, with two gold medals from short track speed skating and one from snowboard. South Korea also grabbed four silver medals and three bronze medals to finish in 13th place.
Short track speed skater Kim Gil-li was the country's lone double gold medalist, winning the women's 1,500-meter title and the 3,000-meter relay title. Choi Gaon soared to the women's halfpipe snowboard gold medal after bouncing back from a bad fall during the final.
Short trackers Choi Min-jeong and Hwang Dae-heon served as South Korea's co-flag bearers at the closing ceremony.
Choi won the relay gold and the 1,500m silver medal in Milan. By reaching seven career medals, Choi became the most decorated South Korean Olympian.
Hwang won the men's 1,500m silver medal and also helped the men's team win the 5,000m relay silver medal. He became the first South Korean male short tracker to win a medal at three consecutive Winter Games.
"I didn't expect that I would carry the flag at the closing ceremony," Choi was quoted as saying on the Olympic Information Service. "I am very grateful to be able to finish the competition by taking on such a meaningful and wonderful role." (Yonhap)
