Greece to bid farewell with dancing in moonlight

After a triumphant Olympics that have confounded the pessimists, the spiritual homeland of the Games is determined to go out in style.

The Greeks certainly know how to party and they want to prove it to the world on Sunday night.

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After a triumphant Olympics that have confounded the pessimists, the spiritual homeland of the Games is determined to go out in style.

"They have had a great Games and they have a lot to celebrate," said Lois Jacobs, producer of Sunday's closing ceremony.

Greece will be bidding an ebullient farewell to billions of television viewers around the world, while for the 10,500 athletes from a record 202 countries it is the perfect opportunity to let their hair down at last.

"Greece is going to go out with one big party," Jacobs promised. "And it is going to be a full moon. We could not have planned it better. The broadcast will last a couple of hours but we will be partying on afterwards."

All those disastrous pre-Games headlines about construction chaos and security concerns will be forgotten.