The origin of the Olympic torch relay

The Olympic torch relay originated from a religious ceremony in ancient Athens, when people made sacrifices to the moon. On the day of summer solstice, believers of Zeus who made a pilgrimage to Athens ran a race to decide who would light the flame on the altar. The winner was authorized to take the torch from the high priest and light the flame on the altar.

First appearance:

The Olympic flame first appeared in the modern Olympic Games at the 9th Amsterdam Olympic Games in 1928. At that time, in addition to building a new main stadium with a capacity of 40,000 people, the host also built a tall tower. During the Olympic Games, there is always a burning flame in the tower. The flame was taken from Olympia, and it was lit by collecting sunlight with a condenser. Then it passes through Greece, Yugoslavia, Austria and Germany, and finally reaches the host country. This is the first time that this kind of activity has been held in the Olympic Games.

1934, the IOC officially decided to hold the flame ceremony from the 1 1 Olympic Games, and hold the flame ceremony next to the temple of Hera in Olympia, and then relay it to the Olympic venues. The organizing committee of Berlin Olympic Games designed a route for the first torch relay, passing through the capitals of Greece, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Austria, Czechoslovakia and Germany, and arrived at Berlin Olympic Stadium on August 1. The torch is made of polished steel, and the handle is engraved with the words "Fakelstaffel-Lauf Olympia-Berlin1936". Above the font are the Olympic rings and the German eagle emblem. Below the font, there is a torch relay route map, and on the platform at the top of the torch body, there are words of thanks to the torchbearers.

Since then, the Olympic flame has officially entered the modern Olympic Games, becoming a great symbol of the modern Olympic Games and even the Olympic spirit. At the same time, the Olympic torch has also become the carrier for the organizing committee to reflect the cultural characteristics of the host city, country and nation. The torch of the 2004 Athens Olympic Games evolved from an olive branch symbolizing victory. It reflects the deep feelings of the Greeks for the Olympic movement in a simple way, and it is passed on in all the cities in the world that have hosted the Olympic Games and will host the Olympic Games soon.

Fire detection:

The modern Olympic torch relay takes fire from the temple of Hera in Olympia, Greece, and lights the torch. Then the torch passed from the temple to Athens, the birthplace of the ancient Olympic movement, and finally reached the host city of the Olympic Games, and lit the torch at the main venue of the Olympic Games at the opening of the Olympic Games.

Because the Winter Olympics and the Summer Olympics are held alternately, the Olympic flame will be rekindled every two years. In the traditional ceremony held in the ancient city of Olympia, a priestess lit the flame with the help of a saint. The priestess collected sunlight with a parabolic mirror and lit the torch. When the flame is lit, the priestess will hold it high and solemnly place it on the clay altar in front of the ruins of Hera Temple. The flame will be passed to the first torch relay messenger. The torch he holds is a unique torch with special significance, carefully designed by the host city of the Olympic Games.

The organizing committee of each Olympic Games is responsible for designing unique torches and then making enough torches for the torch relay. The flame is passed from one city to another until it reaches the Olympic Stadium in the host city.