Image source, Reuters

The next stage of the ceremony glances ahead to 2018, when Pyeongchang becomes the third Asian host of the Winter Olympics. Two Korean songstresses are follow by a white suit-wearing crooner - probably their version of Robbie Williams - for a presentation entitled 'A Journey Together'. Korean athletes who have competed in Sochi also join in a performance which, so I'm told, resembles a landscape painting using traditional Korean colours and shapes.

4) Heavy crash for Brazilian women's bobsleigh team

The Brazilian women's bobsleigh team suffer a heavy crash during a training session at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. The pair were shaken but unhurt after the crash at the Sanki Sliding Centre.

Nick Hope
BBC Sport in Sochi

"The Olympics are drawing to a close, but that isn't the end of the Sochi 2014 Games.

"The Winter Paralympics begin on 7 March where Great Britain - boosted by world leading alpine skiers Kelly Gallagher and Jade Etherington - are targeting 2-6 medals.

"I will be part of our team in Russia for those Games and will bring you extensive coverage across the BBC Sport website and BBC Radio 5 Live."

You can see the schedule here.

Now for an important moment in the Games process - the handover of the Olympic flag. Flying proudly alongside the Russia and Greece flags, it is lowered to the sound of the Olympic anthem before the mayor of the next host city - South Korea's Pyeongchang - is presented with it in a symbolic gesture. You probably can't help but think of London mayor Boris Johnson waving the Olympic flag like a madman at Beijing 2008. I can't.

Matthew Markham:, external Sad to see the Winter Olympics finish, really enjoyed it! Snowboarding rules.

Ann Without an E:, external Thing is that although we're not very good at it and they're low public participation - winter sports are VERY armchair friendly.

Image source, Facebook

As well as a craze for wearing loud clothes and onesies, another popular pastime in the Sochi Olympic village has been posing on the Olympic Rings and posting pictures on social media, such as this one from the Danish curling team.

Image source, Reuters

Now for something completely different - a circus act. No, I'm not talking about any of the competitors for whom it did not go to plan in Sochi. I'm talking about clowns, trapeze artists and the like. Russia has a rich circus culture and chance is that you will have seen the world-famous Moscow State Circus in a usually-barren field near you in the UK at some point. So here the art of Russian circus is celebrated.

5) Eve Muirhead & GB women curlers win bronze medal

Great Britain's women win Olympic curling bronze with the final stone of their match against Switzerland. The team of Eve Muirhead, Vicki Adams, Claire Hamilton and Anna Sloan earned a 6-5 victory to win Britain's first Olympic curling medal since Rhona Martin's gold in 2002.

Mary Ellen:, external Loving the closing ceremony Winter Olympics - my daughter & I transfixed by beautiful colours & choreography.

Joe Malley:, external All a bit too cultured, this is what opening ceremonies should be like. Closing ones should be a massive party.

Now it is time for the ceremony to revert to theatre. The Russian organisers are aiming to celebrate their nation's rich heritage of art, music, ballet, literature and circus - and, even to the untrained eye, they are doing a spectacular job. The crowd collectively rises to its feet to acknowledge a wonderful performance by renowned pianist Denis Matseuv, before dancers from the celebrated Bolshoi and Mariisnky ballet companies gracefully take to the stage.

Image source, AP

Great Britain's final medal of the Games also came in curling as David Murdoch's rink took home the silver medal. Murdoch's immaculately-judged final shot to ensure victory over Sweden in the semi-final will live long in the memory. Beating Canada in the final proved to be a step too far, but their silver guaranteed Britain's best Winter Olympic medal haul since 1924.

Dutch speed skater Jorrit Bergsma, who won gold in the 10,000m and bronze in the 5000m, tweets a picture of himself , externaland girlfriend Heather Richardson, a member of the American speed skating team, inside the Fisht Stadium.

"After all I'm one lucky man," he says.

Image source, Jorrit Bergsma

6) Elise Christie disqualified in chaotic final

Great Britain's Elise Christie is disqualified from the women's 500m short track speed skating final in Sochi.

The Scot attempted to force her way past Italy's Arianna Fontana and South Korea's Park Seung-hi but was deemed to have caused a collision that caused all three to crash, allowing China's Jianrou Li an easy skate to the gold medal.

Image source, AP

Thought the London 2012 Gamesmaker purple and red outfits were natty? Well you need a pair of sunglasses to focus on the loud multi-coloured uniform donned by the Sochi volunteers. About 25,000 provided assistance to athletes, coaches and spectators throughout the Games and they are given a special round of applause for their efforts. I'd give them an extra enthusiastic clap simply for having to wear that awful gear over the past 16 days.

Olympics are rarely free from drug scandals and sadly Sochi 2014 was no exception as six athletes tested positive for banned substances at the Games.

Sweden ice hockey player Nicklas Backstrom became the sixth when he failed a doping test ahead of the men's final earlier today.

Latvian hockey player Vitalijs Pavlovs, Ukrainian cross-country skier Marina Lisogor, German biathlete Evi Sachenbacher-Stehle, Italian bobsleigher William Frullani and Austrian cross-country skier Johannes Duerr are the others.

Image source, AP

Great Britain are rightly proud of their efforts in Sochi, having surpassed the minimum target of three medals set by UK Sport. So understandably the team members are having plenty of fun at the closing ceremony. Sure this is only the beginning of the party....

Image source, AP

Eve Miurhead's women's curlers could not quite match the gold medal won by her fellow Scot Rhona Martin in 2002 but there wasn't a dry eye in the house after Muirhead secured a 6-5 victory over Switzerland with the last stone of the bronze medal play-off.

"I'm mentally buzzing. It's been a constant rollercoaster," said Muirhead afterwards. "We've had some tough losses and great wins and many of the games have come down to last stone, last end. To end on a high makes it even better. I couldn't think of what it would have been like to walk away without a medal."

A brief break in the theatrics as the mass start freestyle skiers receive their medals in the middle of the Olympic Stadium. It is a Norwegian-flavoured celebration for the women's 30km after a clean sweep for the Scandinavian country. And there is also just one nation on the podium for the men's 50km. An enormous roar for three men - clad in red, white and blue puffa jackets and bobble hats - gives away their nationality. Nope, it is not Britain. Of course, it is host nation Russia.

Image source, Reuters

Emily Thomas:, external It looks worth all the blood, sweat, pain and intense competition just to go to the closing ceremony party as an Olympian.

Gareth Hale:, external All in all a pretty darn exciting and entertaining Olympics that was Russia, well done. Olympics are great events

Fun to Funky:, external It's good to see a resurgence for the bobble hat industry this winter games.

Viktor An became a Russian national hero with three Olympic titles and a bronze medal in short track speed skating. And the Korean-born athlete, who controversially swapped allegiance ahead of Sochi, further demonstrates his commitment to the host nation by sporting a colourful hairstyle which has been dyed brightly in Russian red. That's definitely out of a spray can rather than a salon finish. And he looks like Jimmy Krankie as a result.