The Summer Paralympic Games 2016, taking place on September 7-18, have officially ended in Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro. The closing ceremony took place in the Macarana stadium, Sputnik reported.
Famous Brazilian musicians performed in front of the guests and athletes, followed by an immense fireworks display.
"The impossible happened. Brazilians never give up,” Carlos Nuzman, the president of the Rio 2016 organizing committee, said in a speech as quoted by the BBC. He also wished good luck to Tokyo, who will be the next city to host the games. President of the International Paralympic Committee Philip Craven passed the Paralympic flag to the governor of Tokyo.
The ceremony also paid tribute with a minute of silence to Iranian cyclist Bahman Golbarnezhad, who died on Saturday from a cardiac arrest during a road race.
China won the most medals in this year’s game, with a total 239, out of which 107 were gold. It is then followed by the United Kingdom and Ukraine, with 64 and 41 medals respectively.