--- description: Athletes, performers and flags mark the pageantry of the closing ceremony title: Sochi Bids Farewell to the 2014 Winter Olympics image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc4c15a59570cfa04/69868320f983e7345a04c7c5/sochi-olympics-photos-closing-ceremony-04.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [olympics](/tag/olympics/) ## olympics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Sochi Bids Farewell to the 2014 Winter Olympics by [TIME Photo](/author/time-photo/) ## TIME Photo Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 23, 2014 6:38 PM CUT  Dancers create the incomplete Olympic Rings. Dancers create the incomplete Olympic Rings.Barbara Walton—EPA by [TIME Photo](/author/time-photo/) ## TIME Photo Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 23, 2014 6:38 PM CUT Athletes, performers and flags mark the pageantry of the closing ceremony  Performers take part in the closing ceremony. Eric Gaillard—Reuters  Performers take part in the closing ceremony. Adnrej Isakovic—AFP/Getty Images  Performers take part in the closing ceremony. Eric Gaillard—Reuters  Dancers create the incomplete Olympic Rings. Barbara Walton—EPA  The Russian flag is carried into the stadium. Barbara Walton—EPA  The flags of the competiting nations enter the arena. Matthew Stockman—Getty Images  Performers wave the flags of participating nations. Darron Cummings—AP  Members of the Russian Olympic team walk on stage. Ivan Sekretarev—AP  A Russian military drum band performs. Kirill Kudryavtsev—AFP/Getty Images  A performer is suspended from helium-filled clouds. Charlie Riedel—AP  An artist is suspended near a giant balloon meant to represent the moon. Gregorio Borgia—AP  Performers dance during the Closing Ceremony. Adrian Dennis—AFP/Getty Images  Artists perform. Peter Parks—AFP/Getty Images  Actors perform. Kay Nietfeld—DPA/AP  Artists perform. Matthias Schrader—AP  Performers celebrate Russian literature. Matthew Stockman—Getty Images  Russian pianist Denis Matsuev performs. Eric Gaillard—Reuters  A chandelier in celebration of Russian music. Matthew Stockman—Getty Images  Dancers perform. Charlie Riedel—AP  The Flags of Russia, Greece and South Korea are raised. Daniel Karmann—DPA/AP  Performers hold light sticks. Eric Gaillard—Reuters  A balloon travels across the arena. Ryan Pierse—Getty Images  Olympic mascots perform in the stadium. Pawel Kopczynsk—Reuters  Russian President Vladimir Putin walks out from the presidential lounge to take his seat as he is introduced. David Goldman—Pool/Reuters  The Olympic flame claudron is pictured just after being extinguished at the end of the Closing Ceremony. Yuri Kabodnovy—AFP/Getty Images ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/10143/sochi-bids-farewell-to-the-2014-winter-olympics/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/10143/sochi-bids-farewell-to-the-2014-winter-olympics/"},"headline":"Sochi Bids Farewell to the 2014 Winter Olympics","datePublished":"2014-02-23T18:38:49.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:08:37.765Z","description":"Athletes, performers and flags mark the pageantry of the closing ceremony","url":"https://time.com/10143/sochi-bids-farewell-to-the-2014-winter-olympics/","keywords":["olympics","russia","Winter Olympics","Sochi","photography","2014 Sochi Olympics"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc4c15a59570cfa04/69868320f983e7345a04c7c5/sochi-olympics-photos-closing-ceremony-04.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Photo","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-photo/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc4c15a59570cfa04/69868320f983e7345a04c7c5/sochi-olympics-photos-closing-ceremony-04.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Dancers create the incomplete Olympic Rings.","caption":"Dancers create the incomplete Olympic Rings.","creditText":"Barbara Walton—EPA","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/olympics/","name":"olympics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/10143/sochi-bids-farewell-to-the-2014-winter-olympics/","name":"Sochi Bids Farewell to the 2014 Winter Olympics"}}]}] ```