PARIS: The Paris 2024 Olympic torch was lit in ancient Olympia on Tuesday in a traditional ceremony ahead of the July 26 event.
The high priest is played by the Greek actress Mary Mina, who is lit by a backup fire instead of the parabolic mirror that is usually used to start the relay because of the cloudy sky in Greece and France.
The opening ceremony will end with the lighting of the Olympic flame in Paris.
The French capital won the right to host the Summer Olympics for the third time after 1900 and 1924.
“In these difficult times of war and conflict, people are tired of all the hate, aggression, and negativity they face every day,” Bagh said in a statement.
“We want something that unites us, unites us, gives us hope. The Olympic flame that we burn today is a symbol of hope.”
The torch of the first runner of the relay, the Greek Olympic champion Stefanos Ntouskos, was lit by Mina.
Ntouskos then lit the fire shortly after to Laure Manaudou, France’s three-time Olympic medalist in swimming and chairman of the Paris Olympic Torch Relay, as a representative of the host city.
The flame will be handed over to the organizers of the Paris Games at Athens’ Panathenaic Stadium, the site of the first modern Games in 1896, on April 26 after 11 days of relays in Greece.
He will then arrive in Marseille on May 8 aboard the Belém, a three-decker yacht, where around 150,000 people are expected to attend a ceremony in the Old Port in western France the following day.
Founded by Greek settlers from Phocaia in 600 BC, Marseille hosts sailing races.
The French torch relay will last 68 days and will end in Paris on July 26 with the lighting of the Olympic flame.
