Mexico celebrates the achievements of Donovan Carrillo in figure skating 0:44
(CNN) —
The 2022 Winter Olympics came to an end on Sunday after weeks of rocky wins and heartbreaking disappointments.
Eileen Gu and Kamila Valieva became the teenage faces of the Games for very different reasons.
Erin Jackson put on a historic speed skating performance, while Elana Meyers Taylor became the most decorated black athlete in Winter Olympics history.
And Norway did what Norway does best, topping the medal table after 109 events on snow and ice.
CNN takes a look at some of the most memorable moments from Beijing 2022.
Valieva mired in controversy
Russia's Valieva finished a controversial run at the Olympics in fourth place.
Valieva, the 15-year-old Russian figure skating phenom who is expected to take gold in the women's free skating final, faltered while in the midst of a doping test scandal.
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In December, the teenager tested positive for trimetazidine, a heart drug used to treat angina that can increase blood flow to the heart, experts say.
The results did not come to light until Valieva was already in Beijing and had won gold in the figure skating team event by becoming the first woman to land a quad, a jump that involves four turns in the air.
Trimetazidine: the drug banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency makes "the heart work more efficiently"
Despite Valieva's positive test, she was allowed to compete in the singles figure skating event because she was underage.
However, during her final program this week, she fell several times on the ice and placed fourth behind fellow Russian Olympic Committee members Anna Shcherbakova and Alexandra Trusova, who placed first and second respectively.
She ended her routine crying.
Now, eyes are on Valieva's coach, a team doctor and the competitive figure skating community in Russia for their role in what happened to Valieva.
Nathan Chen wins gold in a redemptive performance
Chen ultimately won the gold medal he set out to claim in 2018.
A serene yet jubilant Nathan Chen gave the performance of his career in the men's singles skating competition and reclaimed what was rightfully his after a shocking loss at the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Skating to a medley of songs, including Elton John's "Rocket Man," Chen confidently executed five quad jumps and ended a nearly five-minute performance with a triumphant smile.
"I definitely wanted to be able to top that," Chen told CNN of his 2018 performance, in which he fell and missed out on a medal.
"I wanted to be able to have two short programs that I was very proud of and fulfilled, and I'm very glad I was able to have that experience here."
Gu dominates his first Olympic Games
Gu won three medals this year, including two gold.
The 18-year-old freeski superstar won three medals at his first Winter Olympics, including two golds.
And on her last show, after a near-perfect performance in the women's halfpipe, she even got a well-deserved victory lap.
Born in the United States but competing for China, a decision that has come under a fair amount of scrutiny, Gu had one of the most eye-catching Olympic debuts this year.
She and she made some history while she was at it: she is the first freestyle skier to win three medals at one Games.
"It's been two weeks in a row of the most intense ups and downs I've ever experienced in my life," he told reporters after his victory.
"It has changed my life forever."
Norway keeps winning and breaks a record
Therese Johaug of Norway celebrates winning gold in the 30km cross-country skiing event on Saturday.
Norway won 16 gold medals in Beijing, the most any country has won at a Winter Games.
The country's competitors have won gold in cross-country skiing, speed skating and biathlon, among others.
CNN's Henry Enten says that Norway has two big benefits that drive the success of the Olympics: the ideal climate for winter sports and money: the country is rich, with its GDP among the top 35 in the world.
Winter sports require a lot of equipment, training, and funds.
Mikaela Shiffrin ends the Games without an individual medal
Shiffrin's Olympic career had three DNFs at Beijing 2022 in events where he had previously medaled.
Mikaela Shiffrin endured multiple hardships at this year's Games.
The American skier had won gold medals in 2018 and 2014, and fans were hoping for a treble from the star in Beijing.
However, things didn't work out that way for the 26-year-old Shiffrin, who had three DNF's after crashing three singles events.
She was inundated with criticism from viewers and shared screenshots of some of the negative comments she received.
She said in a video shared Friday that as much as the comments hurt, she hopes fans who have been in a similar situation can learn to disconnect from her haters.
Why Olympic athletes bite their medals and what they do with them afterwards
"That message was for you, to get up and move on," he said in a video shared on Twitter.
"Get out of bed the next day even though you're getting these messages that make you feel really bad."
In her final event at Beijing 2022, the 26-year-old Shiffrin, along with River Radamus, Tommy Ford and Paula Moltzan, finished fourth in the mixed team side event at the National Alpine Ski Center.
"I've had a lot of disappointing moments at these Games, today is not one of them," Shiffrin said.
"Today is my favorite memory."
"This was the best possible way I could imagine ending the Games, skiing with such strong teammates."
Chloe Kim went for the gold (again)
Chloe Kim enjoyed another golden Olympics.
The unstoppable 21-year-old snowboarder struck gold once again with a winning performance in the women's halfpipe, the same category that earned her a gold medal in 2018, when she was just 17 years old.
That Kim dominated once again came as no surprise to anyone, except maybe Kim herself.
She told reporters that she'd had "the worst practice of her life" before her gold medal performance, and she couldn't get most of her landings.
That rough practice went unnoticed in the snow: She attempted a trick involving three and a half turns in the air and scored a 94, propelling her to gold once again.
Zhu Yi faced a firestorm online for his performance
Zhu from China was criticized for falling into her rut.
The California-born 19-year-old, who was competing for Team China, was bombarded with negative comments online after falling to the ice during the women's figure skating short program earlier this month.
Zhu, who gave up her US citizenship to compete on the China team in 2018 and changed her name from Beverly Zhu, has been criticized by Chinese viewers for her lack of fluency in Chinese in addition to her disappointing performance at the Games.
Still, Zhu found positives in her 2022 journey to the Games.
In an Instagram post shared earlier this week, Zhu said that she "persevered through years of adversity and came out a stronger person."
Erin Jackson Wins a Gold She Almost Didn't Competing For
American Jackson wept with joy after winning gold in speed skating.
The American speed skater almost didn't make it to the Olympics — she slipped during qualifying trials — until a teammate gave up her spot so Jackson could compete.
That exchange turned out to pay off: Jackson, 29, became the first black woman to win an Olympic speed skating medal, according to Team USA, and the first American woman to win a speed skating gold medal since 1994.
She cruised to victory by skating just 0.08 seconds ahead of silver medalist Japan.
"I cried immediately, it was a great release of emotion," he told reporters.
"A lot of shock, a lot of relief and a lot of happiness."
Meyers Taylor's historic moment
Strike a pose for joy... Team USA's Elana Meyers Taylor and Sylvia Hoffman celebrate their bronze medal after the two-woman bobsleigh competition.
Meyers Taylor became the most decorated black athlete in Winter Olympics history after winning a bronze medal in the two-woman bobsleigh on Saturday.
The medal is the fifth for Meyers Taylor, surpassing Shani Davis's four, as the 37-year-old became the most decorated female Olympian of all time.
"It's crazy to hear that statistic and know that I'm part of a legacy that's bigger than me," Meyers Taylor said.
"Hopefully it just encourages more and more black athletes to participate in winter sports and not just black athletes, winter sports for everyone."
Figure skater Zhu Yi focuses on "mentally outperforming"
after her fall in the team event of the Winter Olympics
Sunday's closing ceremony was likely an emotional occasion for Meyers Taylor (she was the flag-bearer for Team USA), who hinted that it would likely be her last Olympics.
"I'm going to take some time to really think about this. It's going to be very hard to top these Olympics. Two medals and now closing it out with the flag bearer, it's going to be very, very hard to top that."
Olympic Games Beijing 2022