Olympic Flame

The Olympic Flame is passed from torchbearer to torchbearer during the Salt Lake City 2002 Olympic Winter Games Torch Relay in Taylorsville, Utah. Next to the Olympic Rings, the Olympic Flame is the greatest symbol of the Olympic movement and when it burns, it represents a symbol of peace, hope, inclusiveness, equality, joy and fraternity. Before each Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Flame is lit in a ritual in Olympia, Greece under the authority of the International Olympic Committee and the host country. The Flame burns for the entire duration of the Games and is extinguished during the Closing Ceremony.

This ritual marks the continuity between ancient and modern times in the Olympic movement history.

On its journey from Olympia to the Cauldron, the Olympic Flame will pass through 1,037 communities in an effort to share the Games with as many people as possible.