Kim's appearance at the closing ceremony was been greeted with outrage by some in South Korea. The former North Korean intelligence chief is accused of having been behind a deadly 2010 attack on a South Korean warship. South Korean protesters tried to block Kim's motorcade to the closing ceremony earlier in the day.
Despite the cool body language, Moon's efforts may be bearing fruit. The South's presidential office said on Sunday that members of the North Korean delegation had expressed the North's openness to talks with the United States.
The statement did not make any mention of North Korea's nuclear program or whether the dialogue would be about denuclearisation. But still, this is the first sign of willingness from North Korea in years, and it comes when the Trump administration has been signalling an openness to talk without preconditions.
Despite the divisions and distrust between the two Koreas, they agreed to have their athletes march together at both the opening and closing ceremonies under a banner of unification. They also fielded a unified women's ice hockey team.
The regime in Pyongyang had sent high-level official delegations to both the opening and closing ceremonies and had 22 athletes competing in events including skating and Alpine skiing. It also sent a huge cheering squad and an orchestra.
International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach paid tribute to the athletes, saying they were an example to the world.
"You have shown how sport brings people together in our fragile world; you have shown how sport builds bridges," he said.
A snow globe takes centre stage during the Winter Olympics closing ceremony in PyeongChang.
Photo: AP
"The IOC will continue this Olympic dialogue, even after we extinguish the Olympic flame. In this, we are driven by our faith in the future."
Norway topped the medal table, with a total of 39, including 14 golds. Germany followed with a total of 31 and Canada was in third place with 29. The United States came in fourth with only 23 medals, its lowest in 20 years.
The Games were held in the Pyeongchang area on South Korea's west coast, just 80 kilometres from the Demilitarised Zone that divides the two Koreas.
During his speech, Bach invited several athletes to join him on stage, including South Korea's gold medal-winning skeleton rider Yun Sung-bin, North Korean figure skater Ryom Tae Ok, American skier Lindsey Vonn and Tongan flag carrier Pita Taufatofua.
Performers dressed as pandas during a segment celebrating Beijing as the host city for the 2022 Winter Olympics.
Photo: AP
Australian flagbearer and silver medal-winner in snowboard cross Jarryd Hughes got his moment to shine, though he initially joked he didn't think it was going to happen.
"I was told by our chef de mission – I thought I was in trouble for a moment," said Hughes of the moment Ian Chesterman asked him to perform the the duty.
"No, he gave the announcement and I was just ecstatic that he chose me. It's a great honour, especially for the amazing team that we have here."
Colour and culture were highlights of the closing ceremony.
Photo: AP
Bach signed off by calling upon the youth of the world to gather in Beijing in four years' time for the 2022 Winter Games.
With the ceremony showcasing cutting-edge South Korean technology and a remarkable drone show that dotted out the image of the Games mascot Soohorang, a white tiger, in the night sky, athletes marched into the stadium, many wearing their medals.
The Russian flag, absent at the opening ceremony, was again nowhere to be seen after the IOC decided not to lift the suspension on the country.
It was a bitter-sweet day for Russian athletes, who after savouring the high of winning a nail-biting men's ice hockey final on Sunday had to march without their flag.
Russians were forced to compete as neutral athletes at PyeongChang, an IOC punishment for years of drug scandals involving allegations that Russia ran a systematic, state-backed drug-cheating program.
At leasts two Russian athelete were clouded in scandal after returning positive doping tests during the Games.
Reuters, Washington Post
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