But how is the Closing Ceremony so different from the Opening Ceremony? Well, technically, it’s not really. There is music and flags and speeches and traditions honoured. There is a production schedule and television broadcasts. There are ticket holders, and athletes, and distinguished guests. At the Opening Ceremony there is also that tumultuous build-up along with the hopes for a trouble and incident free two weeks of competition and organization. There is that unwritten pre-cursor that if the Opening goes well, the Games will go well. Go party, have fun (but not too much) then get serious and back to business! That’s a lot of pressure for everyone involved.

But the great thing about the Closing Ceremony is that it has so much more of a relaxed celebratory feeling. That feeling you get when you survived a high pressure situation (especially for the organizers), and the athletes truly have the pressure off of them now. Everyone gets to cherish their results and more importantly, the new friends they made from across the country. The Closing Ceremony just seems to be more fun for everyone involved, more relaxed and dare we say, actually a bit more enjoyable.