The lighting of the Olympic flame is a symbolic moment that has been part of Olympic tradition since 1936. The flame not only represents the positive values that humanity has always associated with the symbol of fire, such as peace and friendship, but also represents behavior as a link between ancient and modern games.
The Olympic flame to be lit at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games will be lit during a ceremony on Tuesday, April 16, in a ceremony reminiscent of ancient Greek traditions.
What is the Olympic Flame Lighting Ceremony? Where does it take place?
The idea of the Olympic Flame itself dates back to the ancient Olympic ceremonies in Olympia, Greece, the very site of the Paris 2024 Olympic Flame Lighting Ceremony.
For the ancient Greeks, fire was a sacred element and fire was always maintained in front of major temples. During the ancient Olympic Games, a flame burned forever on the altar of the sanctuary of the goddess Hestia. Additional fires were also kindled in the temples of Zeus and Hera.
Today the Olympic flame is lit in front of the ruins of the Temple of Hera by an actress playing the role of a high priest. She uses a parabolic plate (known to the ancient Greeks as a skafia) to collect sunlight. And she lights their torch.
What happens to the Olympic flame after it is lit?
The Olympic flame is placed in an urn and carried by Hestiada (Priestess of Fire) to the ancient stadium, where it is handed to the torch bearers by the High Priestess along with an olive branch, the universal symbol of peace.
The torchbearer then brings the flame to the International Olympic Academy’s Coubertin Grove, where it is used to light an altar next to the monument housing Pierre de Coubertin’s heart, the man who founded the modern Olympic movement.
The torchbearer now transfers the Olympic flame to another torchbearer, this one representing the host nation of the 2024 Summer Olympics—France, naturally!
The Olympic flame will then be carried across Greece in an 11-day relay race in which more than 550 torchbearers will carry the torch.
When will the Olympic Flame Relay take place?
The Olympic Torch will arrive at the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens ahead of the handover ceremony to the Paris 2024 Organizing Committee on Friday 26 April. The event starts at 5:30pm CET.
After the ceremony, the flame spent the night at the French Embassy in Athens, and the next day it sailed aboard Belém (the famous three-masted ship first launched in 1896) for Marseille, France, where it sailed in beautiful weather. It is scheduled to arrive to great Fanfare on May 8th.
Where can you watch the Olympic Flame Ceremony?
The Olympic Flame Ceremony will be held on April 16th at 10:30am CEST and you can watch the moment live on Olympic.com.
Coverage of the lighting ceremony will begin at 10:15 a.m. Central European Time.
