Rio de Janeiro passes the Olympic flag to Tokyo at colorful closing ceremony

The Rio 2016 Summer Olympics officially ended on Sunday night and the Olympic flag was handed over to Tokyo, which is the host city for the next iteration of the Olympic Games in 2020.

The Olympic flag was collected and folded in the legendary Maracana stadium during the closing ceremony. Later, the mayor of Rio de Janeiro Eduardo Paes returned the flag to President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Thomas Bach, who handed the flag over to Tokyo governor Yuriko Koike.

The flag passing ceremony symbolizes the end of Rio Games and transition to 2020.

Japan, the next host country, during the ceremony gave a preview of what the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics will offer, modern technologies mixed with traditional cultures.

Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe was also at the Maracana stadium while the acting president of Brazil Michel Temer did not attend the ceremony, presumably to avoid being booed.

Tokyo promised to promote transparency and put an end to Olympic Games scandals and controversies.

The next host city will now focus on the construction of new sports facilities and infrastructure, as well as avenues, skyscrapers, hotels and shopping centers, intended to give the Japanese capital an even more modern look.