The Olympic torch relay is the ceremonial relaying of the Olympic Flame from Olympia , Greece, to the site of an Olympic Games . It was first performed at the 1936 Berlin Games,[ 1] and has taken place prior to every Games since.
Summer Olympic Games [ edit ]
Site of the Olympic Games
Days
Total length (in km)
Total number of torchbearers
Route
Berlin 1936
8
3,422
3,422
Olympia – Athens – Thessaloniki (Greece) – Sofia (Bulgaria) – Belgrade (Yugoslavia ) – Budapest (Hungary) – Vienna (Austria) – Prague (Czechoslovakia ) – Dresden – Berlin (Germany)
Two secondary relays carried the flame from Olympic Stadium in Berlin to the off-site aquatic venues: Grunau (for the rowing course), and Kiel (yachting). The cauldron in Kiel sat in an old Hanseatic galley in the bay. Kiel would also be the yachting site of the 1972 Munich Olympics.[ 2]
/ Cancelled 1940 Games
Cancelled 1944 Games
London 1948
13
7,870
3,372
Olympia – Corfu (Greece) (by ship) Bari – Milan (Italy) – Lausanne – Geneva (Switzerland) – Besançon – Metz (France) – Luxembourg (Luxembourg ) – Brussels (Belgium) – Lille – Calais (France) (by ship)– Dover – London (Great Britain)
A second relay carried the flame from Wembley , where the Games were based, to the sailing centre at Torbay , via Slough , Basingstoke , Salisbury , and Exeter .
Helsinki 1952
5
3,365
1,416
Olympia - Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Aalborg - Odense - Copenhagen (Denmark) (by ship) Malmö - Gothenburg - Stockholm (Sweden) Tornio - Oulu - Helsinki (Finland). A second flame was lit in Pallastunturi (Finland) and joined the main one in Tornio
Melbourne 1956
21
20,470
3,118
Olympia - Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Darwin - Brisbane - Sydney - Canberra - Melbourne (Australia)
Stockholm 1956
(equestrian Games)
9
1,000
490
Olympia - Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Copenhagen (Denmark) (by ship) Malmö - Stockholm (Sweden)
Rome 1960
14
2,750
1,529
Olympia - Athens (Greece) (by ship) Syracuse - Catania - Messina - Reggio Calabria - Naples - Rome (Italy)
Tokyo 1964
51
20,065
870
Olympia - Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Istanbul (Turkey ) - Beirut (Lebanon ) - Tehran (Iran ) - Lahore (Pakistan ) - New Delhi (India) - Rangoon (Burma ) - Bangkok (Thailand ) - Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia ) - Manila (Philippines) - Hong Kong (Hong Kong) - Taipei (Republic of China ) - Okinawa - Tokyo (Japan, following four different routes)
Mexico City 1968
51
13,620
2,778
Olympia - Athens (Greece) (by ship) Genoa (Italy) (by ship) Barcelona - Madrid - Seville - Palos (by ship) Las Palmas (Spain) - San Salvador Island (Bahamas) - Veracruz - Mexico City (Mexico)
Munich 1972
30
5,532
6,000
Olympia - Athens - Thessaloniki (Greece) - Istanbul (Turkey) - Varna (Bulgaria ) - Bucharest - Timişoara (Romania ) - Belgrade (Yugoslavia ) - Budapest (Hungary) - Vienna - Linz - Salzburg - Innsbruck (Austria) - Garmisch-Partenkirchen - Munich (West Germany)
Montreal 1976
5
775
1,214
Olympia - Athens (Greece) (satellite transmission of an electronic pulse) Ottawa - Montreal (Canada)
Moscow 1980
31
4,915
5,000
Olympia - Athens - Thessaloniki (Greece) - Sofia (Bulgaria) - Bucharest (Romania) - Kishinev - Kiev - Tula - Moscow (USSR)
Los Angeles 1984
83
15,000
3,636
Olympia - Athens (Greece) (by airplane) New York – Boston – Philadelphia – Washington – Detroit – Chicago – Indianapolis – Atlanta – St. Louis – Dallas – Denver – Salt Lake City – Seattle – San Francisco – San Diego - Los Angeles (USA)
Seoul 1988
26
15,250
1,467
Olympia - Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Jeju - Busan - Seoul (South Korea)
Barcelona 1992
51
6,307
10,448
Olympia - Athens (Greece) (by ship) Empúries - Bilbao - A Coruña - Madrid - Seville (by airplane) Las Palmas - Málaga - Valencia (by ship) Palma de Mallorca – Barcelona (Spain)
Atlanta 1996
112
29,016
13,267
Olympia - Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Los Angeles – Las Vegas – San Francisco – Seattle – Salt Lake City – Denver – Dallas – St. Louis – Minneapolis – Chicago – Detroit - Boston – New York – Philadelphia – Washington, D.C. – Miami – Birmingham - Atlanta (USA)
Sydney 2000
127
27,000
13,300
Olympia - Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Guam - Palau - Federated States of Micronesia - Nauru - Solomon Islands -Papua New Guinea - Vanuatu - Samoa - American Samoa - Cook Islands - Tonga - Queenstown - Christchurch - Wellington - Rotorua - Auckland (New Zealand) - Uluru - Brisbane - Darwin - Perth - Adelaide - Melbourne - Canberra - Sydney (Australia)
Athens 2004
142
86,000
11,360
Olympia - tour of all Greece - Marathonas - Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Sydney - Melbourne (Australia) - Tokyo (Japan) - Seoul (South Korea) - Beijing (People's Republic of China) - Delhi (India) - Cairo (Egypt) - Cape Town (South Africa) - Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) - Mexico City (Mexico) - Los Angeles - St. Louis - Atlanta - New York (USA) - Montreal (Canada) - Antwerp - Brussels (Belgium) - Amsterdam (Netherlands) - Lausanne - Geneva (Switzerland) - Paris (France) - London (Great Britain) - Madrid - Barcelona (Spain) - Rome (Italy) - Munich - Berlin (Germany) - Stockholm (Sweden) - Helsinki (Finland) - Moscow (Russia) - Kiev (Ukraine) - Istanbul (Turkey ) - Sofia (Bulgaria ) - Nicosia (Cyprus ) - Iraklion - Thessaloniki - Patras - Athens (Greece)
Beijing 2008
130
137,000
21,880
Olympia - Marathonas - Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Beijing (People's Republic of China) (by airplane) Almaty (Kazakhstan ) (by airplane) Istanbul (Turkey ) (by airplane) St. Petersburg (Russia) (by airplane) London (Great Britain) – Paris (by airplane) San Francisco (USA) (by airplane) Buenos Aires (Argentina ) (by airplane) Dar es Salaam (Tanzania ) – Muscat (Oman ) – Islamabad (Pakistan ) – Mumbai (India) – Bangkok (Thailand ) – Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia ) – Jakarta (Indonesia ) – Canberra (Australia) – Nagano (Japan) – Seoul (South Korea) – Pyongyang (North Korea ) – Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam ) - Hong Kong (Hong Kong, China ) – Macau (Macau, China ) – Sanya - Wuzhishan - Wanning - Haikou - Guangzhou - Shenzhen - Huizhou - Shantou - Fuzhou - Quanzhou - Xiamen - Longyan - Ruijin - Jinggangshan - Nanchang - Wenzhou - Ningbo - Hangzhou - Shaoxing - Jiaxing - Shanghai - Suzhou - Nantong - Taizhou - Yangzhou - Nanjing - Hefei - Huainan - Wuhu - Jixi - Huangshan - Wuhan - Yichang - Jingzhou - Yueyang - Changsha - Shaoshan - Guilin - Nanning - Baise - Kunming - Lijiang - Shangri-La County - Guiyang - Kaili - Zunyi - Chongqing - Guang'an - Mianyang - Guanghan - Lhasa - Golmud - Qinghai Hu - Xining - Ürümqi - Kashi - Shihezi - Changji - Dunhuang - Jiayuguan - Jiuquan - Tianshui - Lanzhou - Zhongwei - Wuzhong - Yinchuan - Yan'an - Yangling - Xianyang - Xi'an - Yuncheng - Pingyao - Taiyuan - Datong - Hohhot - Ordos - Baotou - Chifeng - Qiqihar - Daqing - Harbin - Songyuan - Changchun - Jilin - Yanji - Shenyang - Benxi - Liaoyang - Anshan - Dalian - Yantai - Weihai - Qingdao - Rizhao - Linyi - Qufu - Tai'an - Jinan - Shangqiu - Kaifeng - Zhengzhou - Luoyang - Anyang - Shijiazhuang - Qinhuangdao - Tangshan – Tianjin – Leshan - Zigong - Yibin - Chengdu - Shannan Prefecture - Beijing (People's Republic of China)
Sichuan route postponed to the end due to earthquake. [ 3]
London 2012
70
12,800
8,000
Greece : Olympia - Heraklion - Ioannina - Thessaloniki - Athens
United Kingdom : Land's End - Plymouth - Torquay - Exeter - Barnstaple - Taunton - Glastonbury - Bath - Bristol - Gloucester - Worcester - Cardiff - Swansea - Aberystwyth - Bangor - Chester - Much Wenlock - Stoke-on-Trent - Liverpool
Isle of Man : Douglas
United Kingdom: Belfast - Derry - Newry
Republic of Ireland : Dublin
United Kingdom: Belfast - Stranraer - Glasgow - Inverness - Kirkwall - Lerwick - Stornoway - Inverness - Aberdeen - Dundee - St Andrews - Stirling - Edinburgh - Newcastle upon Tyne - Kingston upon Hull - York - Carlisle - Dumfries - Blackpool - Manchester - Leeds - Sheffield - Nottingham - Derby - Birmingham - Stratford-upon-Avon - Rugby - Coventry - Norwich - Ipswich - Cambridge - Stoke Mandeville - Oxford - Windsor - Ascot - Reading - Winchester - Salisbury - Shaftesbury - Bournemouth - Southampton
Guernsey : Saint Peter Port
Jersey : Saint Helier
United Kingdom: Portsmouth - Chichester - Brighton - Hastings - Dover - Canterbury - London .
Rio de Janeiro 2016
100
20.000
10.000
Future
Greece : Olympia - Some Greek cities - Athens
Brazil : 300 Brazilian cities (including all the 26 states capitals and the Brazilian Federal District , the first part to be held in Brasília , and the last part to be held in Rio de Janeiro city).
Tokyo 2020
-
-
-
Future
Winter Olympic Games [ edit ]
Site of the Olympic Games
Days
Total length (in km)
Total number of torchbearers
Route
Oslo 1952
2
225
94
Morgedal – Oslo (Norway)
Cortina d'Ampezzo 1956
5
Rome (by train) Venice – Cortina d'Ampezzo (Italy)
Squaw Valley 1960
19
960
700
Morgedal – Oslo (Norway) (by airplane) Los Angeles – Fresno – Squaw Valley (USA)
Innsbruck 1964
8
Olympia – Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Vienna – Innsbruck (Austria)
Grenoble 1968
50
7,222
5,000
Olympia – Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Paris – Strasbourg – Lyon – Bordeaux – Toulouse – Marseille – Nice – Chamonix – Grenoble (France)
Sapporo 1972
38
18,741
16,300
Olympia – Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Okinawa (by airplane) Tokyo – Sapporo (Japan)
Innsbruck 1976
6
1,618
Olympia – Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Vienna (route nr. 1) Linz – Salzburg – Innsbruck (route nr. 2) Graz – Klagenfurt – Innsbruck (Austria)
Lake Placid 1980
15
12,824
52
Olympia – Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Shannon (Ireland ) Langley Air Force Base , Hampton – Washington – Baltimore – Philadelphia – New York – Albany – Lake Placid (USA)
Sarajevo 1984
11
5,289
1,600
Olympia – Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Dubrovnik (route nr. 1) Split – Ljubljana – Zagreb - Sarajevo (route nr. 2) Skopje – Novi Sad – Belgrade – Sarajevo (Yugoslavia )
Calgary 1988
95
18,000
6,250
Olympia – Athens (Greece) (by airplane) St. John’s, Newfoundland – Québec City – Montreal – Ottawa – Toronto – Winnipeg – Inuvik – Vancouver – Edmonton – Calgary (Canada)
Albertville 1992
58
5,500
5,500
Olympia – Athens (Greece) (on Concorde ) Paris – Nantes – Le Havre – Lille – Strasbourg – Limoges – Bordeaux – Toulouse – Ajaccio – Nice – Marseille – Lyon – Grenoble – Albertville (France)
Lillehammer 1994
82[ nb 1]
12,000[ nb 1]
7,000[ nb 1]
Olympia – Athens (Greece) (mainly by airplane: Frankfurt – Stuttgart – Karlsruhe – Düsseldorf – Cologne – Hamburg (Germany) – Copenhagen (Denmark) – Stockholm (Sweden) ) – Oslo – Lillehammer (Norway)
(National torch relay: Morgedal – Kristiansand – Stavanger – Bergen – Gullfaks – Bergen – Trondheim – Tromsø – Svalbard – Tromsø – Bodø – Oslo – Lillehammer (Norway) ) [ nb 1] [ 4] [ 5] [ 6]
Nagano 1998
51
3,486
6,901
Olympia – Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Tokyo (route nr. 1) Hokkaidō – Chiba – Tokyo – Nagano (route nr. 2) Okinawa – Hiroshima – Kyoto – Nagano (route nr. 3) Kagoshima – Osaka – Shizuoka – Nagano (Japan)
Salt Lake City 2002
85
21,275
12,012
Olympia – Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Atlanta – Charleston, South Carolina - Jacksonville, Florida - St. Augustine, Florida – Orlando, Florida - Miami – Mobile, Alabama – Biloxi, Mississippi – New Orleans - Houston – San Antonio – Austin, Texas - Dallas – Little Rock, Arkansas - Memphis - Nashville, Tennessee – Louisville, Kentucky – Cincinnati – Pittsburgh – Cumberland, Maryland – Washington, D.C. – Baltimore – Philadelphia – New York - Hartford, Connecticut – Providence, Rhode Island - Boston – Burlington, Vermont - Lake Placid – Syracuse - Cleveland - Columbus, Ohio – Chicago – Milwaukee - Detroit – Fort Wayne, Indiana – Indianapolis – Lexington – St. Louis - Kansas City – Omaha – Wichita - Oklahoma City – Amarillo - Albuquerque - Phoenix – Los Angeles – San Francisco – Squaw Valley – Reno – Portland – Seattle – Juneau – Boise – Bozeman – Cheyenne – Denver – Salt Lake City (USA)[ 7]
Turin 2006
75
11,300
10,000
Olympia – Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Rome – Florence – Genoa – Cagliari - Valletta (Malta) – Palermo – Naples – Bari – Ancona – San Marino (San Marino) – Bologna – Venice – Trieste - Ljubljana (Slovenia) - Klagenfurt (Austria) - Trento – Cortina d'Ampezzo – Milan - Lugano (Switzerland) - Bardonecchia – Albertville (France) - Turin
Vancouver 2010
106
45,000+
12,000+
Olympia – Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Victoria , British Columbia – Yukon – Northwest Territories – Alberta – Saskatchewan – Manitoba – Nunavut – Quebec – Newfoundland and Labrador – Nova Scotia – Prince Edward Island – New Brunswick – Quebec – Ontario – Manitoba – Saskatchewan – Alberta (Canada) – Washington (USA) – Vancouver, British Columbia (Canada) [ 8]
Sochi 2014
123
65,000
Olympia – Athens (Greece) (by airplane) Moscow - Saint Petersburg – Kaliningrad – Murmansk – Arkhangelsk – Yakutsk – Vladivostok – Irkutsk – Novosibirsk – Kazan – Nizhny Novgorod – Volgograd – Rostov-on-Don – Astrakhan – Grozny – Sochi (Russia)
Pyeongchang 2018
-
-
-
Future
Beijing 2022
-
-
-
Future
^ a b c d For the 1994 Lillehammer Games, the flame for the national torch relay was lit at Sondre Norheim 's birthplace in Morgedal, where the official 1952 & 1960 flames were lit in the same manner. The original plan to merge it with the official Olympia flame at Oslo was abandoned due to Greek opposition; only the official flame was used in the opening ceremony. All statistics are for the national torch relay only. The Morgedal flame was maintained and later used at the 1994 Winter Paralympics .
Youth Summer Olympic Games [ edit ]
Youth Winter Olympic Games [ edit ]
See also [ edit ]
References [ edit ]
External links [ edit ]