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Frequently Asked Questions |
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Does the flame ever go out? Yes. This may happen for a number of reasons, for example, faulty fuel, bad weather conditions, heavy rain. To ensure the mother flame, which is lit in Olympia Greece from the sun's rays, is the one that arrives at the Olympic Stadium, a number of safety lanterns travel with the convoy to re-light the torch from this mother flame.
Does the Torch run 24 hours a day? No. The Torch Relay is only "on parade" 10 to 12 hours a day, and then stays overnight in towns along the way.
Who will carry the Torch? The Sydney 2000 Olympic Torch Relay will have 11,000 Torchbearers throughout Australia, plus approximately 800 in Greece and approximately 1500 in the 13 Oceania countries. Each Torchbearer will run up to one kilometre.
Where is it going in Australia? The Olympic Torch Relay route will travel within one hour's drive of 85 per cent of the Australian population. The Torch Relay will arrive in Australia on Thursday, 8 June 2000, and travel in every state and territory over 100 days, to arrive at the Olympic Stadium in Sydney on Friday, 15 September 2000.
Will there be celebrations along the route? Yes. Every day there will be "community celebrations" - usually one at lunch and one in the evening, where the community will come together and celebrate the arrival of the Olympic torch in their town. The flame will rest in a portable cauldron during the celebration. Community celebrations will allow almost 200 communities to show Australia's culture and heritage to the rest of the world.
Is it a problem to organise? The Olympic Torch Relay is seen as one of the biggest and most complex road events in the world. Generally, the event needs approximately 150 people and 50 vehicles on the road at any one time to make the Torch Relay happen. Detailed planning has been underway since 1995. Australia will see the longest Torch Relay to date, with the convoy leaving Greece in May 2000 and travelling for 126 days throughout Oceania and Australia to arrive at the Olympic Stadium in Sydney on Friday, 15 September 2000. The Torch Relay is the Olympic movement's way of bringing the Olympic Games to the Australian communities.
Is the flame always alight in Greece? No. The flame is relit using the sun's rays and a parabolic mirror at Olympia in Greece for every Olympic Games and Winter Olympic Games &emdash; every two years.
Is it a different Torch design each time? Each host country is responsible for the design of their Olympic torch. The Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (SOCOG) has worked with designers, manufacturers and fuel technologists to produce an environmentally friendly torch and flame that must withstand various weather conditions. . |
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