Fire up the superlatives.
Incredible. Amazing. Absolutely amazing.
When it came to describing Friday night's opening ceremonies, words weren't enough to encapsulate the experience for U.S. Olympians.
"It was everything I expected, and more, it was just incredible," figure skater Timothy Goebel said.
For Goebel and others, the 2002 Winter Olympics kick-off show was more than fireworks and the "fire within." While the Native American dancing and the pioneer pageantry were impressive, the traditional opening ceremonies pomp was trumped by patriotism and poignancy.
Indeed, on a night of big-ticket artists and music-punctuating pyrotechnics, snowboarder Chris Klug was struck most by the silence.
"It really surprised me at how dead quiet it was when we walked in ? you could hear a pin drop," said Klug, who helped carry the World Trade Center flag into Rice-Eccles Olympic Stadium.
An honor guard of eight Olympians, firefighters and police brought in the flag ? found in the rubble of ground zero and taken to other sporting events as a symbol of Sept. 11 ? for a somber reflection.
Bush's appearance added to the patriotic feel. On the first visit by a U.S. president to a Winter Olympics opening ceremonies, Bush declared the Games open as he stood among American athletes.
"He was really a great person, really down to earth," figure skater Sasha Cohen said.