King Charles calls Olympians 'an inspiration' in message sent to mark the end of the Paris Games, praising competitors' 'true grit and hard toil'
Great Britain ended the Games with 14 golds, 22 silvers and 29 bronzes. However, Britain ended seventh in the medal table because Japan, Australia, France and the Netherlands all won more golds.

The King has called all Olympians 'an inspiration' and congratulated their 'outstanding successes' in a heartfelt message sent to mark the closing of the Paris Olympics, which will be formally closed at a ceremony tonight.

The monarch singled out their 'raw talent, true grit and hard toil' in the message, which came just hours before the final moments of the Olympic Games in the French capital.

A glittering closing ceremony will take place in the Stade de France at 9pm (8pm BST).

In his full statement he said: 'My wife joins me in sending our warmest congratulations to the competitors and their support teams from Team GB and across the whole Commonwealth, for their many outstanding successes at the Olympic Games in Paris.

'Your achievements, across so many disciplines, were forged from that invaluable combination of raw talent, true grit and hard toil over many years, burnished these past weeks by sportsmanship and team spirit in the finest tradition of the Games.