Sochi 2014: A look back
The Winter Olympic Games came and went in what seemed like a flash. We look back at some of the more memorable moments from 16 days in Sochi.
Grand opening
With every Olympic Games, the host nation aims to top the previous one in every way, including the opening ceremony. Sochi was no exception. Ice hockey legend Vladislav Tretiak and former figure skater Irina Rodnina were given the honor of lighting the Olympic flame. Tretiak would be bitterly disappointed by the failure of current Russian hockey team.
Luger Loch strikes gold
Germany's Felix Loch defended the gold medal in the men's luge, which he had earned at the Vancouver Games in 2010. He later added gold in the inaugural team relay, as Germany swept all four luge events.
Bowing out with gold
Alpine skier Maria Höfl-Riesch had already announced prior to Sochi that this would be her last Games. The 29-year-old German left the Black Sea resort with gold in the super combined and silver in the super-G. She just missed adding a bronze in the slalom.
Gold for a new home
South Korean-born short-track speedskater Viktor Ahn capped his four-medal performance at Sochi by leading the Russian men to gold in the 5,000-meter relay. "I will never forget it," said Ahn, who, as Ahn Hyun-soo also won four golds in Turin in 2006 - for South Korea.
Out of the medals - again
Going into the Games, it was clear that no less than gold would be good enough for Russia in ice hockey. But Pavel Datsyuk and the rest of the Russians crashed out to Finland in the quarter-finals. As a single country, Russia has never won gold. It's last such success came as part of the "unified" team that participated in the 1992 Albertville Games. Its last medal was bronze - 12 years ago.
An Ole but a goodie
In Sochi, Ole Einar Bjoerndalen tied the best mark of eight Winter Olympic golds with his fellow Norwegian, retired cross-country skiing great Bjoern Daehlie. The 40-year-old Bjoerndalen became the oldest winner of a Winter Games event in the 10-kilometer sprint, and beat Daehlie's record of 12 career medals by winning the mixed relay with Norway.
A boost for the gold market?
Dominique Gisin of Switzerland and Tina Maze made history, becoming the first-ever joint winners of gold in the women's downhill. The two Alpine skiers covered the Rosa Khutor course in 1 minute, 41.57 seconds. Analysts recently predicted an increase in the price of gold...
Fallen Freund
There was no shortage of crashes in Sochi. Here, German ski jumper Severin Freund takes a tumble on the first jump on the normal hill. Freund would later prevail - along with Andreas Wellinger, Marinus Kraus and Andreas Wank, when they won gold for Germany in the team event.
Not Germany's Games
Germany's haul of eight gold, six silver and five bronze medals put it in sixth place in the medals standings - a far cry from Vancouver where it was placed second. Symptomatic was the fate of cross-country skier Tim Tscharnke, who threw away an all but certain medal in the team sprint when he fell while battling Finland's Sami Jauhojaervi in the closing stages.
Gold for a troubled nation
International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach described the gold medal performance by the Ukrainian women in the 4 x 6 kilometer biathlon relay as the most outstanding of the Games. Vita Semerenko, Juliya Dzhyma, Olena Pidhrushna and Valj Semerenko won Ukraine's only gold medal despite the turmoil that gripped their country.
Sachenbacher-Stehle's shock
Evi Sachenbacher-Stehle appeared to be as shocked as the rest of the Germany Olympic team and its officials when it was announced that she had tested positive for a banned stimulant. Shortly after the result of her "B" sample was announced, former cross-country medalist was disqualified and sent home.
Russia rounds out medal haul
Despite Russia's disappointment on the ice hockey rink, the home nation did top the medal standings in Sochi with 13 gold, 11 silver, and nine bronze medals. Alexander Zubkov steered the Russian four-man bobsled to victory on the final day of competition.
Repeat for the Canadians
Canadian hockey fans had reason to celebrate as their men joined the women in winning another gold medal - defending the title they had won on home ice in Vancouver four years earlier. Captain Sidney Crosby's goal on this breakaway was Canada's second en route to a 3-0 win over Sweden.
Dosvidanya Sochi
The Sochi Olympics ended with a more than two-hour long, glitzy closing ceremony, in which a mechanized larger-than-life bear "blew out" the Olympic flame. IOC President Thomas Bach declared the Games a great success. "Russia delivered all what it had promised," he said.