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      VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) - They were the resilient
Winter Games - beginning in shock, ending in euphoria.

      Opening day was overshadowed by the death of a luger in a
training-run crash. The finale couldn't have been more festive - a
tribute to the organizers, who persevered despite first-week
setbacks, and to the Canadian team, which surged to glory after a
shaky start.

      A crowd of 60,000 filled BC Place Stadium for Sunday's closing
ceremony, many of them Canadians reveling in the overtime victory
over the United States just a few hours earlier by their men's
hockey team. That win, in the games' final event and in Canada's
most cherished sport, gave the host nation a Winter Olympics record
of 14 gold medals and set off wild celebrations across Vancouver.

      The gaiety in the stadium - capped by a rock concert with Alanis
Morissette, Nickelback and Avril Lavigne - contrasted sharply with
the moment of silence at the opening ceremony Feb. 12 for Nodar
Kumaritashvili, the luger killed in a horrific crash on the sliding
track in Whistler just hours before that ceremony.

      The speakers of honor on Sunday, chief Vancouver organizer John
Furlong and International Olympic Committee president Jacques
Rogge, each paid tribute to the 21-year-old athlete.

      "We are so sorry for your loss," Furlong said, addressing the
nation of Georgia. "May the legacy of your favorite son never be
forgotten and serve to inspire youth everywhere to be champions in
life."

      Furlong - who even tried to reach out to francophone Canada with
some halting words in French - quickly shifted to a more upbeat
tone.

      "I believe Canadians tonight are stronger, more united, more in
love with our country and more connected to each other than ever
before," he said. "These games have lifted us up."

      He paid tribute to moguls skier Alexandre Bilodeau, winner of
Canada's first gold medal at these games.

      "Alexandre, your gold medal gave us all permission to feel and
behave like champions," Furlong said. "Our last one (the hockey
gold) will be remembered for generations."

      The stadium literally shook as fans cheered and stamped their
feet in appreciation.

      Rogge then pronounced the games closed, after describing them as
"excellent and very friendly."

      Neil Young, the durable Canadian folk-rock star, followed with a
wistful version of his "Long May You Run" - and the Olympic flame
faded away as he ended.


      Canadian officials ensured an extra measure of poignancy at the
ceremony by selecting figure skater Joannie Rochette as their
flagbearer. Her mother died of a heart attack hours after arriving
in Vancouver last weekend, but Rochette chose to carry on and won a
bronze medal, inspiring her teammates and fans around the world.

      "Yes, it's been a tough week for me," she said before the
ceremony. "But I walk tonight into that stadium with a big smile
on my face. ... I accomplished my goals, and I want to celebrate
with my teammates."

      The team was greeted with a mighty roar when they joined the
fast-moving, informal parade of athletes into the stadium. Among
the cheerleaders was Prime Minster Stephen Harper, wearing a Canada
jacket.

      The U.S. flagbearer was Billy Demong, a veteran of four Olympics
who won a gold and silver medal in Nordic combined.

      There were plenty of reasons for Canada and the United States to
celebrate after 17 days of competition. The U.S. won 37 medals
overall - the most ever for any nation in a Winter Olympics.

      Canada, after a slow start, set a Winter Games record with 14
golds and sparked public enthusiasm in Vancouver that veterans of
multiple Olympics described as unsurpassed.

      The comeback by the Canadian athletes was mirrored by the
determination of the Vancouver Organizing Committee. It struggled
with a series of glitches and weather problems early in the games,
adjusted as best it could, and reached the finish line winning
widespread praise for an exceptional Olympics - albeit one tinged
with sadness.

      Right from the start of the closing show, there was a spirit of
redemption as the producers made up for an opening-ceremony glitch
in which one leg of the Olympic cauldron failed to rise from the
stadium floor. On Sunday, the recalcitrant leg rose smoothly and
former speedskating medalist Catriona LeMay Doan - who missed out
on the opening-night flame lighting because of the glitch - got to
perform that duty this time.

      Later came the traditional handover ceremony, during which the
Olympic flag was lowered and presented to the hosts of the next
Winter Games in 2014.

      Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson handed over the five-ringed
flag to IOC president Jacques Rogge, who passed it on to Anatoly
Pakhomov, the mayor of Sochi, Russia. That was followed by the
Russian national anthem and a presentation about Sochi featuring
opera, ballet, ice skating and giant glowing spheres called
"zorbs."
      


      - The awarding of medals for the men's 50-kilometer cross-country
ski race, won by Petter Northug of Norway.

      - The swearing-in of two new members of the International Olympic
Committee chosen by their fellow athletes - U.S. hockey player
Angela Ruggiero and British skeleton racer Adam Pengilly.


      - The singing of the Olympic anthem by renowned Canadian tenor
Ben Heppner.

      - A tongue-in-cheek revue of Canadian icons and symbols,
featuring singing-and-dancing Mounties, tabletop hockey players,
dancing canoes and flying moose and beavers.

      - A segment in which Canadian actors - including William Shatner
and Michael J. Fox - made fun of national stereotypes.

      Fox, who has Parkinson's disease, received a huge ovation.

      "I lived in the U.S. for 30 years," Fox said. "But if the
U.S. is playing Canada in hockey, I'm sorry, I'm wearing a maple
leaf on my sweater."

Gallery

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Olympics and Paralympics

An Olympics that began with
the death of a luger ended Sunday with an exuberant celebration of
Canada - reflecting a determined comeback by the host country's
organizers and athletes.

An exuberant end to a bittersweet Olympics

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