2018 Winter Paralympic Games' closing ceremony reels off

The closing ceremony of the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Paralympic Games is held at Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium, Pyeongchang, the Republic of Korea (ROK), March 18, 2018. [Photo/Xinhua]

PYEONGCHANG - The 2018 Paralympic Winter Games reeled off its closing ceremony on Sunday to wrap up the 10-day journey of Paralympians in Pyeongchang, an east county of the Republic of Korea (ROK).

The ceremony was being held at the Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium, a main stadium built only for the opening and closing ceremonies.

The Pyeongchang Paralympics brought a record number of 567 athletes from 49 countries and regions around the world, including the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) that took part in the Winter Paralympics for the first time.

The athletes competed in 80 medal events, eight more than the number for the previous Sochi Winter Paralympics, across six sports that include Alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, ice sledge hockey, wheelchair curling, biathlon and snowboard.

The United States, which sent the largest delegation with 68 athletes, dominated the medal tally with 36 medals in total, including 13 gold, 15 silver and eight bronze medals.

China stood in the 20th place with one gold in the wheelchair curling for its first-ever Winter Paralympic medal.

The ROK hosted the Paralympic Games for the first time in 30 years, after hosting the Seoul Summer Paralympics in 1988.

The next Paralympic Winter Games will be hosted in Beijing, China in 2022.