CORTINA, Italy — Beneath the lights of the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium, the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games came to a close Sunday night with a ceremony built around memory, symbolism and the passing of the Games to the next host.

The program, titled “Italian Souvenir,” reflected on the shared experiences of the past two weeks — a celebration of athletes, volunteers and the landscapes that hosted the Games across northern Italy.

Dreams and Possibility

The ceremony opened with a short film, “Dreams Become Memories,” telling the story of a young girl’s dream of sport. The narrative served as a metaphor for athletes around the world — how perseverance, setbacks and determination shape the path to competition.

That idea continued into the first live performance featuring Dergin Tokmak, a Cirque du Soleil performer whose choreography uses crutches as part of his movement. Performing alongside a young girl named Sofia, the sequence explored resilience and the transfer of inspiration from one generation to the next.

Dancers soon joined the stage, transforming the arena floor into a canvas of movement and light as glowing crutches traced pictograms representing sport and inclusion.

Flags and Shared Moments

One of the ceremony’s central moments followed with the raising of the Italian flag. Six athletes carried the flag into the stadium as singer Arisa performed Il canto degli italiani, Italy’s national anthem.

A highlights video then revisited key moments from the Games before the ceremony moved into the Parade of Flags. Led by the Milano Cortina mascots Tina and Milo, athletes representing their country carried in their national flags. For Team USA, Kendall Gretsch and Andrew Kurka served as the American flag bearers.

The ceremony also paused to recognize the thousands of volunteers who supported the Games. Newly elected members of the IPC Athletes’ Council presented bouquets to volunteer representatives while a tribute video celebrated the dedication and spirit that helped bring the Paralympics to life.

A Tribute to the Mountains

The artistic program then shifted toward the landscapes that framed the Games.

Cellist Formisanoff performed a musical sequence inspired by the Dolomites while performers gradually built a symbolic mountain on the arena floor using geometric cubes representing snow, villages and alpine paths.

At the peak of the sequence appeared dancer Giorgia Greco, whose performance embodied the central idea of the segment — that the summit in sport is reached through perseverance and determination.

Passing the Paralympic Flag

As the ceremony moved toward its final acts, the Paralympic flag was lowered during the Paralympic anthem.

The mayors of Milano and Cortina d’Ampezzo presented the flag to International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons, who then handed it to Renaud Muselier and Fabrice Pannekoucke, the regional leaders representing the French Alps 2030 Paralympic Winter Games.

The handover segment, titled “Transcendence,” introduced the next host through a sequence of film, light and music. A reimagined orchestration of “La Marseillaise,” accompanied by percussion from drummer Veeko, built from a quiet opening into a powerful crescendo while images of French Alpine landscapes and Para athletes appeared on screen.

Messages from the Games

Two speeches followed, reflecting on the broader meaning of the Games.

Milano Cortina 2026 President Giovanni Malagò thanked athletes, volunteers and supporters who helped deliver the Paralympics across Italy’s venues. He described the Games as a moment of unity and said the Paralympic flame had shone as a symbol of hope, friendship and inclusion.

IPC President Andrew Parsons called Milano Cortina 2026 a record-breaking success and praised the athletes whose performances shaped the Games.

“When the world watched a skier launch down a mountain, or a Para ice hockey team battle on the ice, something changed,” Parsons said.

He said the athletes had helped shift perceptions through sport and highlighted accessibility improvements made during the Games as part of their lasting legacy.

Parsons then formally declared the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games closed and invited athletes to gather again in four years for the French Alps 2030 Paralympic Winter Games.

The Final Souvenir

The ceremony’s final artistic sequence returned to its central symbol — the souvenir.

Through fog, projection and light, a large snow globe emerged on the stadium floor, containing a stylized landscape that combined the skyline of Milano with the mountains of Cortina.

Sofia returned to the stage carrying a small light representing the Paralympic flame. When she extinguished it, the moment rippled outward as the Paralympic cauldrons in Milano and Cortina were extinguished together.

The ceremony closed with a performance by Italian electronic band Planet Funk, sending the Games out with one final burst of music.

The competition has ended, but the performances and stories from Milano Cortina 2026 now move forward — toward the mountains of the French Alps and the next Winter Paralympic Games in 2030.