Olympians proudly display their national flags

In some of their most emotional moments, Olympic athletes display their national pride.

Medal winners are often handed the flags of their countries as they celebrate their wins. Some wrap themselves in them and weep. Others drape them over their heads or hold them behind their backs as they take victory laps.

Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands wrapped her country’s flag around her and laid down on the track as she celebrated her gold medal in the women’s 5000 meters. Hours earlier, she had picked herself up from a scary fall on the final lap of her 1500-meter heat to not only finish that race, but win it as well.

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The athletes from the men's decathlon pose for a picture on the Olympic rings at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 5, 2021, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Hanna Mills and Eilidh McIntyre celebrated their sailing gold medal by taking Britain’s flag into the water with them. Kevin Mayer of France and Valarie Allman of the United States jumped for joy with their flags behind them as they celebrated winning silver in the decathlon and gold in the discus throw, respectively.

New Zealand’s Risi Pouri-Lane and Michaela Blyde hugged, wrapped in their national flag, as they celebrated their gold medals in women’s rugby sevens in an empty stadium.

These Associated Press photos capture the athletes as they celebrate their wins, flags in tow.

Gianmarco Tamberi, of Italy, celebrates after winning the men's high jump final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Sunday, Aug. 1, 2021, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

April Ross, left, of the United States, and teammate Alix Klineman celebrate winning a women's beach volleyball Gold Medal match against Australia at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 6, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Steven Gardiner, of the Bahamas, reacts after winning the final of the men's 400-meters at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 5, 2021, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

Ukraine's Zhan Beleniuk celebrates defeating Hungary's Viktor Lorincz during the men's 87kg Greco-Roman wrestling final match at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021, in Chiba, Japan. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

Dawid Tomala, of Poland, celebrates after placing first in the men's 50km race walk at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 6, 2021, in Sapporo, Japan. (AP Photo/Shuji Kajiyama)

United States Tamyra Marianna Stock Mensah celebrates defeating Nigeria's Blessing Oborududu and winning the women's 68kg Freestyle wrestling final match at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, Aug. 3, 2021, in Chiba, Japan. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

Damian Warner, of Canada reacts after he won the gold medal for the decathlon at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 5, 2021, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

Chen Yuxi of China, left, silver medal and Quan Hongchan of China, gold medal react after winning gold medal in women's diving 10m platform final at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 5, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)

Aron Szilagyi of Hungary celebrates winning the gold medal after defeating Luigi Samele of Italy compete in the men's individual final Sabre competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 24, 2021, in Chiba, Japan. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Gold medal winner Sakura Yosozumi, right, and silver medalist Kokona Hiraki, both of Japan, celebrate after the women's park skateboarding finals at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

Noah Lyles, of the United States, reacts after his third place finish in the final of the men's 200-meters at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Jolanda Neff of Switzerland hugs teammates Sina Frei (8) who won silver, and Linda Indergand (19) who won bronze, for a sweep of the podium for Switzerland, at the finish line the women's cross-country mountain bike competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 27, 2021, in Izu, Japan. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

Sifan Hassan, of Netherlands celebrates after winning the gold medal in the final of the women's 5,000-meters at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, Aug. 2, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Thomas Pidcock of Great Britain celebrates as he wins the gold medal during the men's cross country mountain bike competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 26, 2021, in Izu, Japan. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

Athing Mu, of United States, celebrates after winning the final of the women's 800-meters at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, Aug. 3, 2021, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Gold medalists Russian Olympic committee Sabre team celebrate on the podium during the medal ceremony for the women's Sabre team final medal competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 31, 2021, in Chiba, Japan. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Anouk Vetter, of Netherlands, right, silver, and Emma Oosterwegel, of Netherlands, bronze, celebrate after the heptathlon at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 5, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Great Britain's Hanna Mills, right, and Eilidh Mcintyre celebrate after winning the 470 women's gold medal during the 2020 Summer Olympics, Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021, in Fujisawa, Japan. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Valarie Allman, of the United States, celebrates after winning the gold medal in the women's discus throw final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, Aug. 2, 2021, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Anthony Zambrano, of Colombia, reacts after his second place finish in the final of the men's 400-meters at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 5, 2021, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Megan Tapper, of Jamaica, reacts after the women's 100-meters hurdles final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Monday, Aug. 2, 2021, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

New Zealand's Risi Pouri-Lane, left, and Michaela Blyde hug, wrapped in a national flag, as they celebrate in the empty stadium after receiving their gold medals in women's rugby sevens at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Shuji Kajiyama)

Elaine Thompson-Herah, of Jamaica, celebrates after winning the women's 100-meter final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 31, 2021, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Keely Hodgkinson, of Britain, celebrates after her second place finish in the final of the women's 800-meters at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, Aug. 3, 2021, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Gold medalist Yulimar Rojas of Venezuela, center, silver medalist Patricia Mamona of Portugal, right, and bronze medalist Ana Peleteiro of Spain, celebrate on the track following the final of the women's triple jump at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Sunday, Aug. 1, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Kevin Mayer, of France, celebrates after his second place finish in the decathlon at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 5, 2021, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

Steven Gardiner, of the Bahamas, reacts after winning the men's 400-meter final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 5, 2021, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Bronze medalist Femke Bol, of the Netherlands, celebrates after the women's 400-meter hurdles at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

United States Tamyra Marianna Stock Mensah celebrates defeating Nigeria's Blessing Oborududu and winning the women's 68kg Freestyle wrestling final match at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, Aug. 3, 2021, in Chiba, Japan. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

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Text from AP News story, Olympians proudly display their national flags.