2004 Summer Olympics torch relay
The 2004 Summer Olympics Torch Relay took the Olympic Flame across every habitable continent, returning to Athens, Greece. Every city which had hosted, will host, or coincidentally elected to host the Summer Olympics, the Winter Olympics and the Youth Olympics was revisited by the torch, as well as several other cities chosen for their international importance. The main reason why the torch relay went around the world was to highlight the fact that the Olympic Games were started in Greece (in ancient times) and in modern times have been held around the world and then took place in Greece in 2004.
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| Host city | Athens, Greece |
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| Countries visited | Greece, Australia, Japan, South Korea, China, India, Egypt, South Africa, Brazil, Mexico, United States, Canada, Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland, France, United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Germany, Sweden, Finland, Russia, Ukraine, Turkey, Bulgaria and Cyprus |
| Start date | March 25, 2004 |
| End date | August 13, 2004 |
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The relay was the first time the Olympic flame had travelled to Africa and South America. The flame was transported from country to country aboard a specially-equipped Boeing 747 leased from Atlanta Icelandic (Registration TF-ARO) called Zeus. On board the flame was carried and burned continuously in specially modified miners lamps.
Route in Greece (first phase)
March 25:
March 26:
March 27:
March 28:
March 29:
March 30:
March 31:
International Route
The International Leg of the 2004 Olympic Torch Relay officially began on June 4, 2004, when the flame touched down in Sydney, Australia, host city of the 2000 Summer Olympics.
Route in Oceania
| Date | Map |
|---|---|
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June 4: Sydney, Australia (host city of the 2000 Summer Olympics) |
Route in Asia
| Date | Map |
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June 6: Tokyo, Japan (host city of the 1964 Summer Olympics and the upcoming 2020 Summer Olympics) |
Route in America
| Date | Map |
|---|---|
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June 13: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (host city of the 2016 Summer Olympics) |
Route in Europe (Excluding Greece)
| Date | Map |
|---|---|
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June 21: Antwerp, Belgium (host city of the 1920 Summer Olympics) |
The International Leg of the 2004 Olympic Torch Relay officially concluded on July 8, 2004, just over a month after it began its global journey and just over a month before the 2004 Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony on August 13, 2004.
Route in Greece (second phase)
July 9 (day 1)
July 10 (day 2)
July 11 (day 3)
- Ierapetra, Pyrgos, Agia Galini
July 12 (day 4)
July 13 (day 5)
July 14 (day 6)
July 15 (day 7)
July 16 (day 8)
July 17 (day 9)
July 18 (day 10)
July 19 (day 11)
July 20 (day 12)
July 21 (day 13)
- Sidirokastro, Vyroneia, Doirani, Kato Poroia, Kilkis
July 22 (day 14)
July 23 (day 15)
July 24 (day 16)
July 25 (day 17)
July 26 (day 18)
July 27 (day 19)
July 28 (day 20)
July 29 (day 21)
July 30 (day 22)
July 31 (day 23)
August 1 (day 24)
August 2 (day 25)
August 3 (day 26)
August 4 (day 27)
August 5 (day 28):
August 6 (day 29):
August 7 (day 30):
August 8 (day 31):
August 9 (day 32):
August 10 (day 33):
August 11 (day 34):
August 12–13 (days 35 & 36):
After visiting Cyprus, the Greek Leg of the Torch Relay resumed on July 9, 2004, with the flame touching down in Crete in the city of Heraklion. During the Greek Leg of the relay, the torch also made a cursory stopover in Albania when the torch was carried through a lake on the Greek-Albanian border.
Aftermath
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The International Olympic Committee has indicated that, due to the success of the 2004 run, they might sanction a global circumnavigation of the flame before every succeeding Olympics. However, those plans were abandoned in March 2009 due to the protests in the international leg of the torch relay of the 2008 Summer Olympics (with an exception made for the 2010 Youth Olympic Games).[1]
The torch relay proved instrumental in the recognition of the importance of trending on Twitter by Abdur Chowdhury during a train journey, a usage which eventually expanded to other Internet platforms.[2]
See also
References
- "IOC Scraps International Torch Relays". Around the Rings. Retrieved 22 May 2013.
- Coletti, Paul (2016-07-02). "The father of trending: Abdur Chowdhury". BBC. Retrieved 2016-07-02.