2000 Summer Olympics closing ceremony
The 2000 Summer Olympics Closing Ceremony took place on 1 October 2000 in Stadium Australia. The Closing Ceremony attracted 114,714 people, the largest attendance in modern Olympic Games history. IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch declared that the 2000 Olympic games were best Olympic Games ever.
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Date | 1 October 2000 |
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Time | 19:00 AEST (UTC+11) |
Venue | Stadium Australia |
Location | Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
Coordinates | 33°50′50″S 151°03′48″E |
Filmed by | Seven Network and SOBO |
Participants | 114,714 in attendance |
Footage | Sydney 2000 Closing Ceremony - Full Length on YouTube |
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Attending heads of state and heads of government
Host nation :
Australia Governor-General of Australia William Deane and wife Helen Deane, Prime Minister of Australia John Howard and wife Janette Howard, Premier of New South Wales Bob Carr, SOCOG President Michael Knight
Segments
Countdown
- ‘Countdown Fanfare’ – Composed by Richard Mills performed by Sydney Symphony Orchestra
- ‘Games 2000 Fanfare’ – Composed by David Stanhope, performed by Sydney Symphony Orchestra
- ‘My Island Home (Earth Beat mix)’ – Written by Neil Murray, performed by Christine Anu
Countdown
The ceremony began with a countdown at the screen coming from 60 to 1. Starting at 23, footage from previous games appeared with Let's Party! at the end complete with an image of fireworks with numbers between 23 and 1 being from previous games until 0 from currents games
- 23 - 1896 Athens
- 22 - 1900 Paris
- 21 - 1904 St. Louis
- 20 - 1908 London
- 19 - 1912 Stockholm
- 18 - 1920 Antwerp
- 17 - 1924 Paris
- 16 - 1928 Amsterdam
- 15 - 1932 Los Angeles
- 14 - 1936 Berlin
- 13 - 1948 London
- 12 - 1952 Helsinki
- 11 - 1956 Melbourne
- 10 - 1960 Rome
- 9 - 1964 Tokyo
- 8 - 1968 Mexico City
- 7 - 1972 Munich
- 6 - 1976 Montreal
- 5 - 1980 Moscow
- 4 - 1984 Los Angeles
- 3 - 1988 Seoul
- 2 - 1992 Barcelona
- 1 - 1996 Atlanta
- 0 - Let's Party!
Entry of the Flagbearers and the Athletes
- 'Games 2000 Fanfare' – Composed by David Stanhope, performed by Sydney Symphony Orchestra
- 'Olympic Fireworks' – Composed by David Stanhope
- 'Journey of Angels' – Performed by Chong Lim
- 'Affirmation' – Performed by Savage Garden
National Anthems of Greece and Australia
The National Anthem of Greece – Performed by The Millennium Children's Choir of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia The National Anthem of Australia – Music & Lyrics by Peter Dodds McCormick, performed by Sing 2001 Choir and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra
The Olympic Order and Cup Awarding
Michael Knight, President of the President of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Organizing Committee (SOCOG) was awarded the Gold Olympic Order as an expression of gratitude for a perfect organisation. In addition, the International Olympic Committee has decided to award the Olympic Cup to the people of Sydney for their enthusiastic and unpartisan support of athletes from all countries.
The New Member Athletes of the International Olympic Committee
The eight athlete members who were elected are:
1) Sergei Bubka (athletics, Ukraine)
2) Charmaine Crooks (athletics, Canada)
3) Bob Ctvrtlik (volleyball, United States of America)
4) Manuel Estiarte (water polo, Spain)
5) Susan O'Neill (swimming, Australia)
6) Alexander Popov (swimming, Russian Federation)
7) Jan Železný (athletics, Czech Republic)
8) Roland Baar (rowing, Germany).
The 'Welcome Home, Olympics: Athens 2004' Handover
Dimitris Avramopoulos, Mayor of Athens and Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki, President of the Athens 2004 Olympic Games Committee were entering to the stadium. After that, the priestesses of Olympia, from Greece, were entering to do a traditional rite in preparation for the Olympic flag Handover Ceremony. After the performance, the Lord Mayor of Sydney, Frank Sartor comes with the Olympic flag and handed over to the Avramopoulos by the IOC President, Juan Antonio Samaranch. After the handover ceremony, the traditional rite has come to the end: The priestesses were looking around the flag, they take off the flag, put laurel branches and they carried the flag to Athens, the next Olympic host city and the birthplace of the competition in the modern era.
Olympic Flag and Hymn
‘Olympic Hymn’ – Composed by Spiros Samara, lyrics by Costas Palamas, performed by Yvonne Kenny- ‘Journey of Angels’ – Composed by Chong Lim
The flag bearers of the Olympic flag were:
1) Lori Munz (swimming)
2) Melissa Rippon (water polo)
3) Anna Mcllwaine (diving)
4) Mathew Belcher (sailing)
5) Neil Dennis (rowing)
6) Stefan Szscurowski (rowing)
7) Kerrie Meares (cycling)
8) Mark Renshaw (cycling)
We'll Be One
- ‘We'll Be One’ – Performed by Nikki Webster & Sing 2001 Choir
Let's Party!
- "Absolutely Everybody (Latino Mix)" – Performed by Vanessa Amorosi
- "Love is in the Air (Olympic samba mix)" – Performed by John Paul Young
- "Back on the Terra Firma" – Performed by Phil & Tommy Emmanuel
- "What You Need" – Performed by INXS with Jon Stevens
- "Working Class Man" – Performed by Jimmy Barnes
- "Beds Are Burning" – Performed by Midnight Oil
- "Treaty" – Performed by Yothu Yindi
- "Dancing Queen" – Performed by Kylie Minogue
- Theme from Jaws – Composed by John Williams
- Theme from the TV show Bananas in Pyjamas (Remix) – Written by Blyton
- "Don’t Call Me Baby" – Written, Lyrics & Performed by Madison Avenue
- "Finally" – Performed by Cece Peniston
- "On a Night Like This" – Performed by Kylie Minogue
- "Down Under" – Performed by Men At Work with cast (The Geodome Stage was folded into a giant 8-sided octagonal figure called The Geode)
- "Waltzing Matilda" – Performed by Slim Dusty with cast
Closing Night Harbour Spectacular

The 'Closing Night Harbour Spectacular' marked the end of the ceremony, with a 25-minute fireworks display over the Sydney Harbour Bridge. It was the largest fireworks display staged in the world at that time, and required the work of five different pyrotechnic companies.
Soundtrack:
- Olympic Fireworks - David Stanhope
- Tannhauser Overture - Richard Wagner
- Arrivals: Movements I to V - Pee Wee Ferris
- Symphony Of A Thousand - Gustav Mahler
Television coverage
Australia - Seven Network on Channel 7; United States - NBC