{"id":440027,"date":"2026-02-22T18:34:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-22T18:34:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/440027\/"},"modified":"2026-02-22T18:34:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-22T18:34:09","slug":"2026-winter-olympics-closing-ceremony-how-to-watch-in-uk-team-gb-flagbearers-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/440027\/","title":{"rendered":"2026 Winter Olympics closing ceremony: How to watch in UK, Team GB flagbearers, more"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>After 16 days of highs, lows and plenty of drama, the curtain is set to fall on the 2026 Winter Olympics with Milan-Cortina organisers putting on a spectacular closing ceremony.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.co.uk\/olympics\/story\/_\/id\/48003408\/2026-winter-olympics-zoe-atkin-wins-bronze-women-freeski-halfpipe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Zoe Atkin&#8217;s capture of a bronze medal<\/a> earlier on Sunday ensured these Games have been the most successful in Team GB&#8217;s history and eyes are already turning to 2030.<\/p>\n<p>Here&#8217;s everything UK-based viewers need to know about tonight&#8217;s closing ceremony.<\/p>\n<p>How to watch closing ceremony in UK<\/p>\n<p>The much-anticipated closing ceremony gets under way at 7.30 p.m. GMT. It will be broadcast live on BBC iPlayer and BBC Two. Build-up begins from 7 p.m.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.co.uk\/nfl\/story\/_\/id\/28074905\/squirrels-cats-dogs-bees-animals-ran-loose-stadiums\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Dog on the course at the Olympics recalls past wildlife interruptions<\/a><br \/>&#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.co.uk\/olympics\/story\/_\/id\/47980819\/2026-winter-olympics-alysa-liu-women-figure-skating\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">How Alysa Liu became the unlikeliest Olympic figure skating champion<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Where is the closing ceremony taking place?<img class=\" lazyload lazyload\" data-image-container=\".inline-photo\" height=\"320\" width=\"570\"\/>The Roman amphitheatre that will host the closing ceremony is 1,996 years old.\u00a0Claudio Lavenia\/Getty Images<\/p>\n<p>Despite the two Olympic flames burning in Milan and Cortina d&#8217;Ampezzo, the closing ceremony is being held in Verona at the Verona Olympic Arena. Built in 30 AD, Italy&#8217;s third-largest Roman amphitheatre was built to host gladiator battles but will now play host to a spectacular closing event.<\/p>\n<p>The venue will also host the 2026 Winter Paralympic Games opening ceremony in March.<\/p>\n<p>It is about a two-hour drive from Milan and three hours from Cortina d&#8217;Ampezzo.<\/p>\n<p>Who are Team GB&#8217;s flagbearers?<img class=\" lazyload lazyload\" data-image-container=\".inline-photo\" height=\"320\" width=\"570\"\/>Matt Weston&#8217;s two golds saw him become the most successful British man in Winter Olympic history.\u00a0David Pearce \/ Team GB<\/p>\n<p>Matt Weston and Charlotte Bankes have been selected as Team GB&#8217;s flagbearers for the closing ceremony.<\/p>\n<p>Weston won two golds at the Games &#8212; following up his triumph in the men&#8217;s skeleton with another gold in the mixed team event alongside Tabby Stoecker.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;To be selected as flagbearer is a massive, massive honour and I&#8217;m so proud to be able to represent the country at the Closing Ceremony,&#8221; Weston said in a statement. &#8220;The fact that it&#8217;s taking place at such an iconic venue makes it even more exciting. I think it will be a unique and very Italian experience, and a great way to end the Games.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><img class=\" lazyload lazyload\" data-image-container=\".inline-photo\" height=\"320\" width=\"570\"\/>Charlotte Bankes (left) won gold alongside Huw Nightingale in the mixed team snowboard cross.\u00a0Hannah Peters\/Getty Images<\/p>\n<p>Bankes was selected after competing in her fourth Olympic Games. She won Team GB&#8217;s first ever Winter Olympic gold on snow with Huw Nightingale in the mixed snowboard cross.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;To be asked to carry the flag is a dream come true and feels like a moment for our entire snowboard cross team. We have made history for our sport, and I will be walking out there carrying it for everyone who has been part of that journey,&#8221; she said.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Leading Team GB out at my first Closing Ceremony will be very special. It is a chance to reflect on everything we have put into these Games and to celebrate the medals we have won, and those we have come so close to.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>What can we expect to see in the closing ceremony?<img class=\" lazyload lazyload\" data-image-container=\".inline-photo\" height=\"320\" width=\"570\"\/>The Olympic cauldron at Milan&#8217;s Arch of Peace will be extinguished at the same time as the cauldron in Cortina d&#8217;Ampezzo.\u00a0Maja Hitij\/Getty Images<\/p>\n<p>The Roman amphitheatre is set to provide a stunning backdrop to the festivities &#8212; its embodiment of Italian cultural heritage means its selection as host venue is fitting.<\/p>\n<p>As is always the case for these events, the ceremony will feature the great and the good of Italian music, art and sport.<\/p>\n<p>Organisers have said the finale will &#8220;weave together&#8221; these cultural touchstones, &#8220;celebrating unity and the enduring bonds between athletes and nations&#8221; with a theme of &#8220;Beauty in Action.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The two Olympic cauldrons will be extinguished simultaneously in Milan and Cortina d&#8217;Ampezzo.<\/p>\n<p>As has been the case for recent Games, Ben Sherman will outfit the British delegation for the closing ceremony. Team GB have said flagbearers Weston and Bankes will wear &#8220;unique hand-knit scarves and winter hats created as part of a collaboration between Ben Sherman and five-time Olympic medallist Tom Daley.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>How did Team GB athletes perform at these Games?<\/p>\n<p>UK Sport chiefs said they felt British athletes could bring home eight medals from the Milan-Cortina Games but after a succession of near-misses in the opening days of the Games it seemed the final total might fall well short of that figure.<\/p>\n<p>But a flurry of golds &#8212; including two on one day &#8212; means that the 2026 Winter Olympics goes down as Team GB&#8217;s most successful in history. They managed the same high-water mark of five set at Sochi 2014 and Pyeongchang four years later but the unprecedented number of golds means it ranks as Britain&#8217;s best return.<\/p>\n<p>There were two golds in the skeleton and Team GB&#8217;s first on snow in the mixed snowboard cross event. The men&#8217;s curlers settled for a silver on the penultimate day of the Games and Atkin&#8217;s bronze took the Team GB total to five.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.co.uk\/olympics\/story\/_\/id\/47947238\/team-gb-winter-olympics-medal-record-milan-cortina\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">All Team GB medal winners as gold record broken<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Where are the next Winter Olympics taking place?<img class=\" lazyload lazyload\" data-image-container=\".inline-photo\" height=\"320\" width=\"570\"\/>The French Alps was announced as the hosts of the 2030 Winter Olympics in a ceremony last year.\u00a0FABRICE COFFRINI\/AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n<p>The Olympic flag will be lowered and handed over to delegates from the hosts of the next Winter Olympics Games &#8212; the French Alps in four years&#8217; time. Those games are scheduled to be held between Feb. 1 and Feb. 17, 2030.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After 16 days of highs, lows and plenty of drama, the curtain is set to fall on the&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":440028,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[59,57,58,50,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-440027","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-united-kingdom","8":"tag-gb","9":"tag-great-britain","10":"tag-greatbritain","11":"tag-news","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom","14":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/440027","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=440027"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/440027\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/440028"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=440027"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=440027"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=440027"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}