Festival of flames closes Paralympic Games

The closing ceremony – billed as the Festival of the Flame – lived up to its name as flame throwers, blazing torches and a gigantic heart of fire lit up the Olympic Stadium.

Minutes earlier, they had been moved by the grit and determination of war hero Captain Luke Sinnott – who hauled himself up a flagpole to proudly fly the union flag.

The courageous 32-year-old lost his limbs in 2010 after volunteering to search an area “saturated” with improvised explosive devices to protect his comrades. Organisers described his role in the ceremony as “a supreme feat of strength and courage”. Captain Sinnott, a keen sailor, is working towards his dream of competing at the Rio 2016 Paralympics in a boat funded by Help for Heroes.

Stephen Daldry, London 2012’s executive producer for all the opening and closing ceremonies described the flag unveiling as “devastatingly emotional”.

The ceremony included stunning visual effects and over 1,000 performers, including a cast of disabled artists, who had spent weeks learning circus skills for the show. Coldplay played a series of songs, including a duet with Rihanna. Rapper Jay-Z also made an appearance in the finale which was wathed by 80,000 people in the stadium and 7.7 million on TV.

Human spirit

Soldier Rory Mackenzie, whose leg was blown off by a roadside bomb in Iraq, praised Paralympians’ “indomitable human spirit.”

He told the crowd: “Tonight we bring you the Festival of the Flame, the symbol of the spirit of the Games, which has burned bright at London 2012.

“Tonight we celebrate that spirit and although we have many differences, there is one quality we all share, one thing all of us have in common: human spirit.

“We have all been touched by the triumphs and drama of the Paralympics, witness to the indomitable human spirit of the athletes.

“We have come together in peace for the Games and through that respect for each other, found hope for the future.”

London mayor Boris Johnson passed the Paralympic Flag to the mayor of Rio Eduardo Paes. Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, represented the Royal Family.

Medals tally

China has finished top of the Paralympic medals table, with 231 medals – 95 gold. Great Britain cemented third place behind Russia, with a tally of 120, including 34 golds.

Quadruple gold medal winners David Weir and Sarah Storey were the flag-bearers for the GB team.

Wheelchair racing legend Weir – nicknamed the Weirwolf – was awarded the honour for his heroics in the 800m, 1500m and 5000m – coming just hours after his marathon win.

Sarah Storey – who also bagged gold in four events – has been recognised for her triumphs in the individual pursuit and 500m time trial in the velodrome.

She made it a four gold haul at Brands Hatch by storming to victory in the Time Trial and Road Race.

After the ceremony, work will begin to take down the temporary sports venues dotted about the Olympic Park, such as the Basketball Arena and the Riverside Arena, which hosted hockey matches.

Having been radically transformed for the Games, the site in Stratford, East London, will undergo many other great changes over the next 18 months as it becomes the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

The site, a pocket of largely industrial wasteland in a deprived stretch of London’s east end, was the subject of the biggest and most complex compulsory purchase orders in British history.

The new-look park is set to reopen to the public in phases from July 27 next year – a year after the opening of the London 2012 Olympics.

It will be designed to host 2,000 events a year and planners have set a target for 9.3million visitors to pass through it annually from 2016.