The Olympic and Paralympic Torch Relays in Paris in 2024 are two distinct parts of a same narrative.
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The ceremonial kindling of the eternal ceremony flame for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games is scheduled for Tuesday in Olympia, where the ancient Games originated. This marks the commencement of a torch relay that will span from the Acropolis to the South Pacific. The historical town of Olympia in the Peloponnese region of southwest Greece, which has been the cradle of the Olympics since 776 BCE, will host the congregation of numerous officials and onlookers.
This event typically takes place biennially preceding the Summer and Winter Olympics. In a stark contrast to the previous Games in Tokyo and Beijing, which were muted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this time, the torch relay events will be open for public attendance. During a preparatory event on Monday, Greek actress Mary Mina ignited the Olympic flame using a concave mirror that concentrates sunlight.
She then passed the flame to Stefanos Ntouskos, the rowing gold medalist from the Tokyo Games, who served as the initial torchbearer. Should inclement weather impede the use of the mirror, the kindled torch from the rehearsal will serve as a reserve. This torch relay reflects an age-old ritual from the original Olympic Games, where a holy flame was maintained throughout the competition.
This ritual was reintroduced during the Berlin Games in 1936. It is widely anticipated that Laure Manaudou, the former French swimmer and 2004 Athens Olympics gold medalist, will be the initial torchbearer for France in Olympia. The flame-lighting event is set to occur amid the ruins of the Temple of Hera, which dates back 2,600 years.
Distinguished guests including Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou and International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach will be in attendance. Joining them will be French sports minister Amelie Oudea-Castera and Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo.
Artemis Ignatiou, the Olympic Flame ceremony’s choreographer and artistic director, shared with ERT, the state TV, descriptions of the ceremony’s peaceful ambiance characterized by natural sounds and an almost mystical silence. She expressed a sensation of timelessness and described the performance as ethereal. The delivery of the Olympic anthem will be performed by the American mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato. At the event, the legendary Greek vocalist Nana Mouskouri, age 89, is set to perform.
The ritual involves an actor, depicting an ancient Greek priestess, who focuses the solar rays with a polished mirror onto a silver torch filled with flammable material, which induces ignition. This lit flame then serves to initiate the relay, with this year’s torch-bearing a champagne hue representing France. The journey through Greece culminates with the transfer of the torch on April 26 at the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens.
Adverse weather, such as rain or heavy clouds, might render the mirror ineffective. However, contingency plans involving multiple rehearsals leading to the official lighting ensure the preservation of a backup flame. Past ceremonies have faced interruptions due to protests, most notably during the ceremonies for the 2008 and 2022 Beijing Summer and Winter Games, respectively. Despite the disturbances during the lighting ceremony in 2008, Greek security forces faced challenges in foreseeing and averting a similar occurrence 14 years later.
In 2008, demonstrations prompted the discontinuation of Olympic torch relays internationally, except for within Greece and the host nation. Typically, these torches are engineered to remain ignited, but mishaps have occurred, such as during the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, when a gust of wind snuffed out the flame. It was discreetly reignited with a lighter, a tactic also employed during Montreal’s 1976 rain-drenched ceremony.
For the upcoming relay in Greece, roughly 600 individuals will take up the torch, traversing 5,000 kilometers across 41 communities in an 11-day journey. The ceremonial transfer to the Paris 2024 team is set for April 26 at Athens’ historic Panathenaic Stadium, home of the 1896 inaugural modern Olympics. Immediately following, on April 27, the torch sets sail for France aboard the Belem, a vintage ship from the 19th century and a French national treasure.
After initially sailing in 1896, the Belem engaged in trade with lands like Brazil and Guyana for nearly 20 years. Once in France, the torch will pass through the hands of 10,000 bearers, covering 64 regions and 400 towns, including numerous tourist spots, on its 12,000-kilometer course through mainland France and distant French territories. Concluding its journey, the flame will brighten the Paris Olympics opening ceremony along the Seine River on July 26, marking a historic departure from traditional stadium settings.
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