King Charles calls Olympians ‘an inspiration’ as Paris Games finish

The King has called all Olympians ‘an inspiration’ and congratulated their ‘outstanding successes’ in a heartfelt message sent to mark the closing of the Paris Olympics, which will be formally closed at a ceremony tonight.

The monarch singled out their ‘raw talent, true grit and hard toil’ in the message, which came just hours before the final moments of the Olympic Games in the French capital.

A glittering closing ceremony will take place in the Stade de France at 9pm (8pm BST). 

In his full statement he said: ‘My wife joins me in sending our warmest congratulations to the competitors and their support teams from Team GB and across the whole Commonwealth, for their many outstanding successes at the Olympic Games in Paris.

‘Your achievements, across so many disciplines, were forged from that invaluable combination of raw talent, true grit and hard toil over many years, burnished these past weeks by sportsmanship and team spirit in the finest tradition of the Games.

‘To those who missed out on the greatest prizes, you have most certainly not fallen short in the pride that you, too, have generated for your nations.

‘As we thank France for hosting such a wonderful tournament and look to the Paralympics ahead, I can only say that you have all been an inspiration.’

Great Britain ended the Paris Olympics with 65 medals – the same amount won at London 2012 and the nation’s second-best ever tally on foreign soil.

They came third behind the United States (126) and China (91).

But Team GB won eight fewer gold medals than in Tokyo three years ago and were 13 down on the 27 collected at Rio 2016.

A final return of 14 gold, 22 silver and 29 bronze saw Britain slip to seventh spot in the medal table – its lowest place since finishing 10th at Athens 2004 – and third-best European nation behind hosts France and the Netherlands.

Traditional Olympic sports such as athletics, cycling and swimming returned medals, while rowing banished its Tokyo nightmare to win three golds in a strong regatta.

But newer sports such as skateboarding, taekwondo and trampolining also had success, while Team GB won its first-ever medals in sport climbing.

There is no time for Team GB to rest however – it has already begun planning for the Los Angeles 2028 Games by securing Stanford University as its exclusive preparation camp.

A star-studded show will bring an end to the two-week sporting spectacle on Sunday night.

Hollywood action man Tom Cruise is expected to bring a dramatic finale to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, which has been hailed a roaring success despite torrential rain  and chaotic start.

The Mission Impossible star is set to abseil into the Stade de France stadium to pick up the five-ring Olympic flag and transfer it to Los Angeles, the host of the 2028 Games.

The switch across the Atlantic will feature live performances by pop superstar Billie Eilish, LA rockers Red Hot Chili Peppers and Snoop Dogg.

The regular appearance of the legendary rapper has been hailed by Olympic chiefs for helping introduce the Games to a record audience of half the world’s population.