The biggest winter sporting event ever held in Alaska came to a ceremonial close Sunday at Sullivan Arena when Lt. Gov. Fran Ulmer declared an end to the 2001 Special Olympics World Winter Games and the symbolic flame was extinguished.

Two years from now, the flame will burn again in Ireland, host of the 2003 World Summer Games.

The Winter Games brought 2,400 athletes to Anchorage from 69 countries and inspired some 6,000 people to volunteer. Thousands more showed up just to be spectators and cheer on athletes they had never known before. At the end, 1,894 medals were awarded.

"To the people of Alaska, you have created the best winter Games in the history of Special Olympics," Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the founder of the movement, told the audience at the farewell ceremony.

"This week here in beautiful Alaska, we have seen the best in sports, the best in volunteers, the best in families, and the best in sponsors," she said. "You are the best athletes in the world. Congratulations."

Anchorage Special Olympics cross-country skier and World Games silver medalist Sarah Maas accompanied Ulmer to the stage at the Sullivan about 8:30 p.m. Ulmer and Maas were both present three weeks ago in Athens, Greece, when the flame was lit.

"Thanks to all of you for making this a very special week for Alaska," Ulmer told the athletes seated in the arena.

Early in the ceremony four Team USA athletes helped fold the Special Olympics flag and passed it to athletes from Ireland, a country that expects 7,500 participants from 160 countries for the 2003 games in June.

Sunday's closing ceremony was much more relaxed than the March 4 opening. The Canada delegation tossed a stuffed, Canadian flag-dressed bull moose into the air, and athletes from Argentina wore yellow plastic hats and carried pinwheels. Alaska athletes -- the only delegation to parade into the arena -- received a standing ovation from the crowd of athletes, coaches, volunteers and fans as they streamed in.

The ceremony consisted of video clips of competitions and award ceremonies, along with music and speeches. The Anchorage band Jubilee played Irish music while dancers from the Irish Dance Academy of Alaska performed traditional Irish jigs.

While the 2001 Special Olympics World Games are officially over, volunteers and employees are still responsible for getting delegations safely to the airport, said Ben Stevens, the organization's president and chief executive officer.

"I think it has gone pretty well," Stevens said in an interview.

Organizers worked for more than four years to make possible the weeklong event. At its biggest, the World Winter Games employed about 70 people who worked to ready seven sports venues from Eagle River to Girdwood.

The trained volunteers included interpreters for 29 languages, security officers and medical staff. The organizers arranged for transportation for all the athletes and for workers to prepare an estimated 34,200 breakfasts, 60,000 lunches and 34,000 dinners at 10 dining halls. They distributed 12,000 hand warmer packets. They prepared for many contingencies -- from medical to diplomatic -- but in the end, there were no serious health problems or defections.

And somehow, the Anchorage organizing committee raised $17 million to make the games possible.

"(But) probably our biggest challenge was to try to get the community to embrace (the Games) because all the events were free and we never knew how many would show," Stevens said. "And they came in hordes. It was really a remarkable thing to witness."

People packed indoor venues to watch speed skating, figure skating and floor hockey. At the McDonald Memorial Center in Eagle River, fans were turned away or stood to watch speed skaters. The Tesoro Sports Centre welcomed 4,500 to 5,000 people a day, nearly twice the number expected.

And despite soggy weather, skiing, snowboarding, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing competitions were crowded with Alaska fans who held handmade signs and cheered for athletes who came from places half way around the world.

The biggest problem was the overcrowding of some venues, Stevens said. But it was a problem organizers welcomed. The turnout made the competitions and awards ceremonies even more memorable to athletes, he said.

"My hat's off to everyone in Anchorage," Stevens said.

Several delegations of athletes and coaches -- about 1,400 people -- planned to depart Anchorage between 10 p.m. Sunday and noon today, Stevens said. And sports venues have to be dismantled, he said. Housing and food services ends on Tuesday.

Heather Handyside, staff director of education and cultural exchange for the world Games in Anchorage, said the games will have a lasting impact beyond the medals and scores and the economic boost to Anchorage.

"If our goals were to change attitudes for a generation, then we've succeeded," she said.

Reporter Molly Brown can be reached at mbrown@adn.com or 257-4343.