Russia pokes fun at itself by recreating 'malfunctioning' fifth ring at closing ceremony (GIF)

Remember that embarrassing malfunction during the Sochi opening ceremonies when five giant snowflakes transformed into a glowing set of four Olympic rings and a dud? Well, the Russians remembered it too, and at Sunday’s closing ceremonies, decided to poke fun at themselves by recreating the widely ridiculed start to the Winter Games.

During the choreographed routine Sunday night, performers wearing sparkly get-ups moved into formation to create a giant set of Olympic rings — but deliberately left one ring as a small, disconnected circle — an inside nod to that original technical failure — before it bursts into the final fifth ring to rousing cheers

Filled with pride after a spectacular showing at the costliest Olympics ever, Russia celebrated 17 days of sports and global unity on Sunday night with a farewell show that handed off the Winter Games to their next host, Pyeongyang in South Korea.

And they did it with a sense of humor.