FLAMEOUT

Delayed Tokyo 2020 Olympics Closes With a Whimper

Amid rising COVID-19 cases and shocking athletic moments, the 2020 Summer Games are officially closed.

The 2020 Tokyo Summer Games are officially over after two weeks of fears, tears, and triumphs. The subdued closing ceremony was held in a grassy field with actors jumping rope and performing yoga meant to mimic a Tokyo park set up in the stadium to give athletes a taste of what they missed by being confined to the Olympic stadium thanks to COVID-19 restrictions. Six flag bearers, including one person with a disability, a health-care professional and four athletes, folded up the Olympic flag while those athletes who were still in town—COVID-19 restrictions meant that competitors and their coaches had to leave within 48 hours of their event ending—carried their own countries’ flag. The remaining 62 flags were carried by delegates. Meanwhile in Paris, where the 2024 Summer Games will be held in three years, the Eiffel Tower was being prepared to be used as a flagpole for what will be the world’s largest flag, covering over 58,000 square feet to herald the next time summer Olympians will meet.