2024 Paris Olympics Closing Ceremony Full Recap: Tom Cruise Repels from the Roof, Snoop Dogg Performs and More

Mar. 15, 2025

Luke Hales/Getty Images

H.E.R.sang the U.S. national anthemas part of the LA28 handover, whileMission ImpossiblestarTom Cruiseperformed a skydiving stunt(part live and part pre-recorded).

Keep reading for a full recap of the exciting festivities.

A Dramatic Performance of ‘My Way’ Closes Out the Paris Olympics

August 11, 2024 06:08 PM EDT

French songstress Yseult performed an epic and dramatic performance of “My Way” to conclude the 2024 closing ceremony.

Léon Marchand Enters the Arena with the Olympic Flame

French swimmer Léon Marchand is back with the Olympic flame, now entering Stade de France and taking the stage.

Alongside other athletes and IOC President Thomas Bach, they blew out the flame.

Snoop Dogg Is Back in the U.S. — and Performing His Hits!

August 11, 2024 05:57 PM EDT

2024’s Olympics ambassador Snoop Dogg is back home in California, and performing some of his biggest hits for the closing ceremony.

Snoop Dogg.Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for LA28

Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for LA28

At the conclusion of Snoop Dog’s performance in Venice Beach, a cloud of smoke in the colors of the Olympic rings was set off.

Billie Eilish Performs ‘Birds of a Feather’ from Lifeguard Shack

August 11, 2024 05:50 PM EDT

Just as teased, Billie Eilish was part of the 2024 closing ceremony handover to Los Angeles 2028.

Eilish wore a Ralph Lauren polo in red, white and blue for her big moment, which had her singing from a classic Los Angeles lifeguard shack.

Finneas, too, was in his Ralph Lauren finest, wearing a blue blazer with the Team USA emblem.

August 11, 2024 05:46 PM EDT

Tom Cruise delivered on his promise of an epic stunt, repelling from the roof of Stade de France and walking to the stage amid hordes of excited athletes — including one who stole a kiss on his cheek.

Cruise then accepted the Olympic flag from Simone Biles, before hopping on a motorcycle and hitting the streets of Paris.

He wound up in an airplane, eventually parachuting down to the Hollywood sign in pre-recorded footage. Cruise turned the sign into the Olympic rings, before handing off the bike to U.S. cyclist Kate Courtney.

Courtney delivered the flag to Olympian Michael Johnson, who delivered it to skateboarder Jagger Eaton.

Eaton and the flag ultimately ended up in Venice Beach, right in time for a Red Hot Chili Peppers performance.

Simone Biles Helps with the Olympic Flag Handover from Paris to Los Angeles

August 11, 2024 05:36 PM EDT

Bass then walked the flag to Team USA’s most-decorate gymnast, Simone Biles, who held the flag while H.E.R. sang the U.S. national anthem.

Simone Biles with Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass.FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images

FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images

Tom Cruise Gets Into His Harness at Stade de FranceAugust 11, 2024 05:29 PM EDTCopy The Link To This Blog PostTom Cruise at Stade de France.Mustafa Yalcin/Anadolu via Getty ImagesAhead of the 2024 closing ceremony, it was announced that Tom Cruise would be performing a gravity-defying stunt to help usher in L.A. 2028.As Thomas Bach, IOC president, gave a speech on Sunday, Cruise was spotted in the Stade de France getting put into a harness.The handover ceremony is up next!

Tom Cruise Gets Into His Harness at Stade de France

August 11, 2024 05:29 PM EDT

Tom Cruise at Stade de France.Mustafa Yalcin/Anadolu via Getty Images

Mustafa Yalcin/Anadolu via Getty Images

Ahead of the 2024 closing ceremony, it was announced that Tom Cruise would be performing a gravity-defying stunt to help usher in L.A. 2028.

As Thomas Bach, IOC president, gave a speech on Sunday, Cruise was spotted in the Stade de France getting put into a harness.

The handover ceremony is up next!

Other Artists — Including Ezra Koenig — Keep the Party Going with Live Performances

August 11, 2024 04:58 PM EDT

Their mega-hit “1901” was next up, as the NBC cameras showed the Team USA athletes jumping and dancing next to the stage.

Phoenix Takes the Closing Ceremony Stage to Perform ‘Lisztomania’August 11, 2024 04:50 PM EDTCopy The Link To This Blog PostPhoenix.Steph Chambers/Getty ImageFrench indie band Phoenix took the stage at the 2024 closing ceremony to perform their 2009 hit, “Lisztomania,” as athletes gathered around the artists and rocked out.During the chorus, the full theatre could be heard singing, “Think less but see it grow / Like a riot, like a riot, oh / Not easily offended / Not hard to let it go / From a mess to the masses / Lisztomania.”

Phoenix Takes the Closing Ceremony Stage to Perform ‘Lisztomania’

August 11, 2024 04:50 PM EDT

Phoenix.Steph Chambers/Getty Image

Steph Chambers/Getty Image

French indie band Phoenix took the stage at the 2024 closing ceremony to perform their 2009 hit, “Lisztomania,” as athletes gathered around the artists and rocked out.

During the chorus, the full theatre could be heard singing, “Think less but see it grow / Like a riot, like a riot, oh / Not easily offended / Not hard to let it go / From a mess to the masses / Lisztomania.”

Pianist Alain Roche Plays ‘The Hymn to Apollo’ from a Suspended PianoAugust 11, 2024 04:33 PM EDTCopy The Link To This Blog PostTalk about incredible feats!Pianist Alain Roche played ‘The Hymn to Apollo’ while being suspended from the air on his back, a piano also being held from the sky above him.Eventually, opera singer Benjamin Bernheim joined him, standing in the middle of one of the rings while he performed the song.

Pianist Alain Roche Plays ‘The Hymn to Apollo’ from a Suspended Piano

August 11, 2024 04:33 PM EDT

Talk about incredible feats!

Pianist Alain Roche played ‘The Hymn to Apollo’ while being suspended from the air on his back, a piano also being held from the sky above him.

Eventually, opera singer Benjamin Bernheim joined him, standing in the middle of one of the rings while he performed the song.

August 11, 2024 04:30 PM EDT

The Golden Voyager.Jamie Squire/Getty Images

Jamie Squire/Getty Images

According to a media guide, the character is pulled from multiple references, including Génie de la Liberté, a gilded statue located in Place de la Bastille in Paris, as well as interstellar time capsule the Voyager Golden Record, which was launched into space in 1977.

Withhelp from characters from the opening ceremony— the masked torchbearer and horseman — the voyager carried the Greek flag, in honor of the birthplace of the Olympics. They planted the flag amid the desolate and dark landscape created on the Stade de France stage.

A replica of “The Winged Victory of Samothrace,” a statue of the goddess Nike that resides in the Louvre, then rose from the stage.

Other explorers then took the stage to help the voyager to exhume the Olympic rings.

The Golden Voyager.MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP via Getty Images

MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP via Getty Images

Allyson Felix, Track and Field’s Most Decorated Women, Honored as Part of Athlete’s Commission

August 11, 2024 04:10 PM EDT

Allyson Felix was honored alongside other newly-elected members of the International Olympic Committee’s Athlete’s Commission on Sunday from the stage at Stade de France.

“It’s an amazing place to start,” she told PEOPLE of the space. “I would love to keep growing it. But now, it feels like a home . . . and that’s what it’s meant to be.”

Winners of Women’s Marathon Presented with Their Medals

August 11, 2024 04:01 PM EDT

The winners of the women’s marathon, held on Sunday morning, were presented with their medals during the ceremony. The Netherlands’ Sifan Hassan won gold, Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa took silver and Kenya’s Hellen Obiri was the bronze medalist.

August 11, 2024 03:41 PM EDT

“Incredible” was a popular choice, though so was “hot” — in reference to the minor heatwave Paris experienced during the two weeks of events.

Team USA celebrates during the closing ceremony.Luke Hales/Getty Images)

Luke Hales/Getty Images)

Katie Ledecky and Nick Mead Proudly Carry the U.S. Flag Into Stade de France

August 11, 2024 03:24 PM EDT

Nick Mead and Katie Ledecky.Arturo Holmes/Getty Images

Arturo Holmes/Getty Images

Along with representatives of the other 204 delegations, the Team USA flagbearers, Katie Ledecky and Nick Mead, entered Stade de Franceproudly carrying the American flag.

In contrast to the opening ceremony — where the delegations did the Parade of Nations in boats on the Seine — Mead and Ledecky walked in with the other country’s flagbearers.

“It’s incredible,” Mead told NBC’s Mike Tirico from the stage at Stade de France. “I’m so honored to be standing next to Katie to represent the us and the sport of rowing as the first rowing flagbearer.”

Only then, did the rest of the athlete delegations enter the arena to join Ledecky and Mead.

Athletes enter Stade de France during the 2024 Olympics closing ceremony.Jamie Squire/Getty Images

August 11, 2024 03:15 PM EDT

There’s a lot involved in making sure this closing ceremony goes just right.

270 artists and performers are participating, with 9,000 athletes and staff expected as well, according to a media guide.

The Stade de France drew in over 71,000 spectators — and it’s a good thing, as there were 35 days of rehearsal leading up to the big event.

French Swimmer Léon Marchand Begins the Return Journey of the Olympic Flame

August 11, 2024 03:10 PM EDT

Marchand, 22, then walked toward the Louvre with the lantern. According to a media guide, the small lantern contains the Olympic flame.

Leon Marchand.Maja Hitij/Getty Images

Maja Hitij/Getty Images

August 11, 2024 03:06 PM EDT

Team USA’s Closing Ceremony Flagbearers Are Katie Ledecky, Nick MeadAugust 11, 2024 02:41 PM EDTCopy The Link To This Blog PostMuch like for an Olympic opening ceremony, the closing ceremony also highlights two athletes from each country as flag bearers.Thechosen Olympiansfor Team USA for the Aug. 11 closing ceremony are: SwimmerKatie LedeckyandrowerNick Mead.In a statement at the time of the announcement, Ledecky — now the most decorated female American Olympian — said, “I am so proud of this team’s accomplishments in Paris and excited to celebrate with my teammates on Sunday.”

Team USA’s Closing Ceremony Flagbearers Are Katie Ledecky, Nick Mead

August 11, 2024 02:41 PM EDT

Much like for an Olympic opening ceremony, the closing ceremony also highlights two athletes from each country as flag bearers.

Thechosen Olympiansfor Team USA for the Aug. 11 closing ceremony are: SwimmerKatie LedeckyandrowerNick Mead.

In a statement at the time of the announcement, Ledecky — now the most decorated female American Olympian — said, “I am so proud of this team’s accomplishments in Paris and excited to celebrate with my teammates on Sunday.”

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source: people.com