OLYMPIC TORCH

 

THE SYMBOL OF OLYMPIC TORCH

 

 It commemorates the theft of fire from the gods by Prometheus and its subsequent delivery to humanity. Prometheus was punished by the gods, because fire was considered to bring humans closer to divinity and that is why the Greeks had a flame lit in all their temples. The origins of the tradition date back to ancient Greece, where fires were kept burning in the venues where the first Games were held.

The flame was not present in the new Games until the 1928 Amsterdam Olympic Games and since then it has been a fundamental part of the contemporary tradition. Berlin 1936 was the first time that the relay trip was introduced to carry the flame from Olympia to the venue of the Games. Unlike the flame, the relay course was never used in the ancient Olympic Games. The Olympic flame is normally associated with a message of peace and hope. Since Amsterdam 1928 it has become one of the most powerful symbols of the Olympics.

Today, the flame of each Olympic event is traditionally lit with the sun's rays and the use of a parabolic mirror in the ceremony that takes place in Olympia, followed by a relay in Greece before leaving for the host city of the Olympic Games.

 

TORCHBEARER

 

 The Olympic torch relay is the “second most important communications tool after the Games themselves”, personalities such as the actor Sylvester Stallone, the footballer Michelle Platini and the boxer Mohamed Ali have participated in the relays. In 2024, the flame was lit on April 16 and is expected to arrive in Paris on July 26.The Organizing Committee of each Olympic event is obliged to deliver to the IOC (International Olympic Committee) 40 torches, which are reviewed and used during the relays that take place from Athens, Greece, to the final venue. In French territory, the Olympic torch will pass through 10,000 relays, who will cross 65 symbolic places in the French nation, before reaching the capital.