The Olympic Test
Test Your Olympic Knowledge
The Olympics are finally here so we’re having Olympic week on the summer blog. Take our Olympic quiz and then learn all about the Olympic torch and its route around Britain.
| The Olympic Torch Route |
Here’s a cool animation of a fly through of some of the London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay route.
| Lighting the Flame |
A very precise ritual for the lighting of the flame is followed at every games. It is lit from the sun’s rays at the Temple of Hera in Olympia, in a traditional ceremony among the ruins of the home of the Ancient Games.
After a short relay around Greece, the flame is handed over to the new host city at another ceremony in the Panathenaiko stadium in Athens.
The flame is then delivered to the host country, where it is transferred from one torch-bearer to another, spreading the message of peace, unity and friendship.
It ends its journey as the last torch-bearer lights the cauldron at the Opening Ceremony in the Olympic stadium, marking the official start of the Games. The flame then stays lit until it is put out at the Closing Ceremony, signifying the end of the Games.
| The Route |
Lit in Greece, the Olympic flame arrived in the UK on 18 May 2012 before it set out on the next day on a 70-day Olympic Torch Relay. The Olympic flame stands for peace, unity and friendship. It is being carried by 8,000 torch bearers.
The Olympic flame will have travelled to within an hour of 95 per cent of people in the UK, the Isle of Man, Guernsey and Jersey during the 70-day Torch Relay.
| The Torch Bearers |
Each torch-bearer carries the flame in, or near to, their local area to help friends and family cheer them on along the way.
