A fitting and colourful closing ceremony brought the Monaco Games to an end yesterday evening.

It was held in the area in front of the Palace, the older part of the city of Monte Carlo, Monaco’s capital.

The arrival of the Sovereign Prince Albert triggered the start of the proceedings. After the playing of the Monagesque natonal anthem, there was a defile of the athletes, marching in alphabetical order with Monaco at the rear, from near the Cathedral to the square in front of the Palace. They all passed in front of the main enclosure where the various dignitaries were seated.

Ms Yvette Lambin-Berti, president of the Organising Committee of the Games, Henry Rey, vice president of the National Olympic Committee of Monaco and Charalambos Makrides, a member of the Cyprus Olympic Committee then proceeded to the rostrum from where Ms Lambin-Berti delivered her closing speech and this was followed by the lowering of the Games flag to mark the closure of these Games. Henry Rey presented the it to Charalambos Makrides. The next edition in 2009 is to be held in Cyprus.

A 20-minute spectacle was one of the highlights of the evening. The ceremony was brought to an end by the extinction of the flame.

Later in the evening, a dinner was held on board the MSC Melody, the cruise liner which hosted the Games athletes and officials during these Games.