London hands over Olympic flag to Rio

The mayor of Rio de Janeiro Eduardo Paes waves the Olympic flag after it was handed to him by President of the International Olympic Committee Jacques Rogge, not seen, during the Closing Ceremony at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Sunday, Aug. 12, 2012, in London. AP/Matt Dunham

LONDON – The Olympic flag has been handed from London to organizers of the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.

London Mayor Boris Johnson handed the flag to IOC President Jacques Rogge, who then presented it to Rio Mayor Eduardo Paes.

Rio then began an eight-minute segment to showcase the Brazilian city, the first in South America to host the Olympics.

The flag handover was one of the centerpiece moments of Sunday night’s closing ceremony of the London Games.

It followed the march of athletes into the stadium and musical performances by acts ranging from the Spice Girls to George Michael to Annie Lennox.