TURIN, Italy – About the only unscripted moment of the Turin Olympics closing ceremony came just as one official speaker prepared to pass the mike to another.
Nothing in the dancing Tarot cards that enlivened the farewell program foreshadowed that an unidentified man would rush toward Turin organizing committee president Valentino Castellani. As he was finishing a speech of gratitude for a Games fairly well executed, the intruder bellowed what later was deciphered as "Passion lives in Torino." Security guards rushed him out of sight.
The show went on Sunday, hardly missing a beat of its Carnival theme on a crisp night.
From Yoko Ono to Apolo Ohno, the Turin Olympics offered surprises and shining moments. Few would have predicted that skier Bode Miller's most notable venue would be the Tabata night club in Sestriere, rather than a competition slope. Even fewer ranked Cindy Klassen, a speedskater from Canada, as the woman who would upstage 80 nations' athletes, even the sparkling figure skaters.
Not everything was a surprise in the XX Winter Olympiad; Germany won the medal count again.
The closing show emphasized the host city's artistic legacy and strengths. Old, solid and buttressed by its established culture, Turin delivered a Games that were safe rather than sorry.
As for sorry, look no further than Bode Miller's performance on and off the slopes.
As for safe, soldiers and police officers appeared to leave no stone – with the exception of those used in curling – unturned in keeping tabs on the proceedings.
The Games' theme of passion came across more emphatically for some than it did for others.
"These were Games of heart, warmth and empathy and smiles," International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge said earlier Sunday. "I must say the venues were perhaps the most remarkable in Winter Games history."
Organizers said they were pleased with the 900,000 tickets sold of the 1 million available.
But much of the noise and enthusiasm in some venues came from clusters of Swiss or Dutch fans. U.S. spectators gave rousing support for athletes, including the silver-medal winning ice dance team of Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto and figure skater Sasha Cohen, who recovered from a program-opening fall to capture second place.
Cohen spoke for many when she pinpointed the most inspiring moment as Chinese pairs skater Zhang Dan's restart after a brutal fall. She and her partner went on to win the silver medal, which Chinese Olympic officials said would prod their nation's athletes to aim high in preparing for the 2008 Beijing Summer Games.
"Watching the Chinese pairs, I said, 'Wow – that's real strength," said Cohen, the U.S. champion whose road to Turin was overshadowed by five-time world champion Michelle Kwan's injury and withdrawal from the Games.
Athletes such as speedskater Joey Cheek, who won a gold and a silver, helped compensate for story lines lost because of Kwan's pullout and Miller's failure to win a single medal in five Alpine competitions. Cheek donated the $40,000 that the USOC was to pay him for his medals to charity.
Rogge mentioned the IOC's fight against doping in his closing speech, as he had in his opening remarks Feb. 10. Drugs did not dominate, though a dramatic raid of the Olympic Village lodgings of 10 Austrian athletes got attention. No positive tests resulted.
Earlier in the Games, the IOC stripped a Russian biathlete of her silver medal after she had a positive drug test.
"I promise that we shall continue to fight for a pure and healthy sport," Rogge said during his closing ceremony address.
Police later had the man who disrupted the official speeches in custody for questioning.
The host nation sang its anthem proudly. Italian gold medalists such as Armin Zoeggeler in luge and Enrico Fabris in speedskating thrilled the home crowd.
Klassen, who won five speedskating medals and earned a salute from Rogge on Sunday, helped Canada to an excellent Games as it prepares for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
Canadian singer Avril Lavigne performed as her nation's representative entertainer Sunday. But she could not outdo Vancouver mayor Sam Sullivan, a quadriplegic injured in a skiing accident as a teenager. Sullivan, whose wheelchair had been adapted to take the traditional handover of the Olympic flag, smiled with endearing humility and hope.
Hope helped Turin organizers present a Games that went out in fine fashion. They ended officially with the dying of the caldron's flame. The celebration continued with a flashy fireworks display. Sprays of purple and silver lit the night sky until it grew quiet.
Then a lone helicopter made a pass above the scene, where hope had stirred people into dancing as best they could in stadium seats at points through the night, people who were not officially dancers but just people infused with hope.
E-mail charasta@dallasnews.com
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