Olympic flame lit at Olympia for Milan–Cortina 2026 relay
The Olympic flame was ignited at ancient Olympia (during a rain‑avoiding rehearsal) and transferred to the official torch to begin its relay.
Key Points
- The Olympic flame was ignited at ancient Olympia (during a rain‑avoiding rehearsal) and transferred to the official torch to begin its relay.
The ancient site of Olympia hosted the lighting ceremony yesterday for the Olympic flame of the Milan–Cortina d’Ampezzo 2026 Winter Games, which begin on 6 February.
Because rain was forecast in Greece, the actual ignition by sunlight was carried out on Monday during a rehearsal to preserve the purity of the traditional method. Yesterday the flame was transferred to the official torch to begin its relay.
The first stage of the journey will traverse Greece, arriving in Athens next Thursday for the formal handover ceremony. The flame will reach Rome the following day, and on the 6th the relay will start on Italian soil.
The Italian leg will last 63 days, covering some 12,000 kilometres and visiting all 20 regions and 110 provinces before reaching Milan on 6 February for the Games’ opening ceremony at the Giuseppe Meazza Stadium in San Siro.
Original Sources
This article was aggregated from the following Catalan-language sources: