VERONA - The Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics concluded on Sunday, after 17 days of competition that saw broad participation, historic breakthroughs and China's best-ever performance at an overseas Winter Games.

International Olympic Committee president Kirsty Coventry declared the Games closed at the historic Verona Arena, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

"This is the true Olympic spirit: competing, embracing, lifting each other up whatever the result. You showed us what excellence, respect and friendship look like in a world that often forgets these values," Coventry said in her closing speech.

"The flame may soon go out, but its light will stay with us - in every child inspired to dream big, in every person reminded that courage and kindness still matter."

"The Olympic Games will continue to be a space where the athletes can inspire the world through sport - freely, safely and proudly," said the former Olympic swimming champion.

The Games officially opened on February 6, featuring 2,880 athletes from 93 delegations - including first-time Winter Olympic participants from Benin, Guinea-Bissau and the United Arab Emirates - competing in 116 events across eight sports and 16 disciplines, with women accounting for a record 47 percent of competitors.

As the most geographically spread-out Winter Olympics in history, the Games' competition venues were divided into four clusters: the urban hub of Milan, and the mountain venues of Cortina, Valtellina and Val di Fiemme, spanning over 22,000 square kilometers in northern Italy.