The lighting of the Olympic flame
The lighting of the Olympic flame
Using the sun’s rays and a parabolic mirror, the Olympic flame was lit on on the 29th of September by a high priestess at the Temple of Hera.
The priestess then used the flame to ignite the torch of the first runner of the Relay, 18-year-old Greek Alpine skier Giannis Antoniou.
The Olympic flame will make a seven-day journey across Greece, travelling through 27 municipalities before arriving in the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens, site of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896, on 5 October for the official Olympic Flame Handover Ceremony.
On 6 October, the flame will be flown to Moscow, where the Olympic Torch Relay – presented by Coca-Cola, Ingosstrakh and Russian Railways – will begin its 123-day journey around Russia.
About 14,000 torchbearers are expected to carry the torch. For more information on the 2014 Sochi Olympics, please visit http://www.sochi2014.com/en/