November 23, (THEWILL) – The route and torchbearers for the 2024 Paris Olympic torch relay in Greece were revealed on Thursday, by the Hellenic Olympic Committee (HOC). The torch relay will commence on April 16, 2024, in Ancient Olympia, where the Olympic flame will be lit to mark the start of its 11-day journey across Greece.
Approximately 600 torchbearers will carry the flame across 41 municipalities and over 5,000 kilometres before the relay concludes at the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens on April 26. The extensive route was designed to connect all corners of Greece and highlight some of its most treasured archaeological sites and landscapes. Places like Mycenae, Delphi, Meteora and the Acropolis will be included to showcase the history, culture and Greece’s natural beauty.
At the Panathenaic stadium, Greek Olympic water polo captain, Giannis Fountoulis, will receive the flame and hand it off to HOC President, Spyros Capralos. He will then present it to the Paris 2024 Organising Committee. Capralos commented that “the Olympic flame carries special messages of peace, cooperation and noble competition that can rekindle hope”.
The event also welcomed speeches emphasising unity through sport by Deputy Minister of Sport, Yannis Vroutsis and France’s Ambassador to Greece, Laurence Auer. The first torchbearer announced is Olympic rowing champion Stefanos Douskos.
Applications are now open to the Greek public to participate as torchbearers via the HOC website. The HOC relay commission chairman Thanasis Vassiliadis provided details of the torch’s route and duration, which comes almost 20 years after Greece last hosted the Olympic torch.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
