| Part of 2008 Summer Olympics | |
.jpg) The Memory torch section after the cauldron was extinguished | |
| Date | 24 August 2008 |
|---|---|
| Time | 20:00 – 21:55 CST (UTC+08:00) |
| Venue | Beijing National Stadium |
| Location | Beijing, China |
| Coordinates | 39°59′30″N 116°23′26″E / 39.99167°N 116.39056°E |
| Filmed by | Beijing Olympic Broadcasting (BOB) |
| Footage | Full closing ceremony on the IOC YouTube channel on YouTube |
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| Part of a series on |
| 2008 Summer Olympics |
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The 2008 Summer Olympics closing ceremony was held at the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest.[1] The ceremony was directed by Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou and began at 20:00 China Standard Time (UTC+8) on Sunday night, 24 August 2008. The number 8 is associated with prosperity and confidence in Chinese culture.[2]
- The musical acts included
- Plácido Domingo and Song Zuying singing The Flame of Love (lyrics by writers Song Xiaoming and Yuan Yuan)
- Wei Wei and Sun Nan singing Beijing Beijing (wo ai Beijing).
- Leona Lewis, Jimmy Page (with David Beckham making an appearance), Elspeth Hanson as the violinist and Kwesi Edman as the cellist.
- Andy Lau, Emil Chau, Jackie Chan, Karen Mok, Kelly Chen, Joey Yung and Nicolas Tse.
- Wang Lee Hom, Stefanie Sun and Rain.
- Han Hong
- Klaus Badelt wrote the music for the closing ceremonies.
The Ceremony also included the handover of the games from Beijing to London. Guo Jinlong, the Mayor of Beijing, handed over the Olympic flag to the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson. There was also a performance organized by the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG).
While the opening ceremony was described as an artistic and serious introduction of China's ancient past, the closing ceremony was described by Western media as "much more lighthearted", "silly," and "fun" than the opening ceremony.[3][4]
By the end of the 16 days of NBC's coverage of the Beijing Olympics in the United States, it had also become the most-watched U.S. television event of all time,[5] with over 211 million American viewers tuned into the Olympics on NBC according to the Nielsen Media Research;[5] this is 2 million more than the 1996 Atlanta Games, the previous all-time record-holder.[5]
- ^ Full Coverage: The Closing Ceremony of the 2008 Olympic Games Archived 24 August 2008 at the Wayback Machine – The Official Website of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games (en.beijing2008.cn) (24 August 2008) (Retrieved on 24 August 2008)
- ^ "The Number Eight And The Chinese". Archived from the original on 27 April 2007. Retrieved 22 April 2007.
- ^ "Olympics Close With a Bang and a Double-Decker Bus". The New York Times. 25 August 2008. Retrieved 25 August 2008.
- ^ "China engages in revelry at Olympics' closing ceremony". Los Angeles Times. 5 August 2008. Archived from the original on 28 August 2008. Retrieved 25 August 2008.
- ^ a b c "Beijing Games most-watched U.S. TV event". The Hollywood Reporter. 24 August 2008. Archived from the original on 27 August 2008. Retrieved 24 August 2008.