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TORINO 2006: The Olympic Flame
Origins Of The Flame
The ancient Greeks considered fire to be a divine element and they maintained perpetual fires in front of their principal temples. This was the case in the sanctuary of Olympia where the Ancient Olympic Games took place. A flame burned permanently on the altar of the goddess Hestia, situated in the Prytaneum (building used for the large banquets held in honour of the athletes at the end of the Games), and such fires were also lit on the altars of Zeus and Hera, the temple in front of which the Olympic flame is lit today.
Lighting The Flame
In ancient times, the flame was lit using the rays of the sun, to ensure its purity, and a skaphia, the ancestor of the parabolic mirror used today for lighting the Olympic flame. Today, the flame is lit by an actress playing the part of a priestess in front of the ruins of the temple of Hera in Olympia, and the choreography and costumes used in the ceremony are based upon those of Antiquity. The Olympic flame is then lit using the sun’s rays and a parabolic mirror before being passed to the first torch bearer. The Olympic flame may only be lit using the rays of the sun.
he Olympic Torch Relay
The flame is carried by a relay all the way to its final destination: the Olympic Stadium in the Host City of the upcoming Olympic Games. Although this is normally by runners exchanging the flame on the relay route, the flame may also be transported by other means such as boat, airplane, car or even transmitted by satellite. When the flame finally arrives at its destination, the final torchbearer will run a lap of the stadium before the flame is used to light the Olympic cauldron, which remains lit for the duration of the Games and is only extinguished at the Closing Ceremony of the Games.
The Flame And The Relay Today
In the context of the modern Games, the Olympic flame is a manifestation of the positive values that Man has always associated with fire. Like the messengers who proclaimed the sacred truce, the runners who carry the Olympic flame encourage the whole world to put down their weapons and turn towards the Games. The choice of Olympia as a departure point emphasises the link between the Ancient and Modern Games and underlines the profound connection between these two events.
The Flame Unites Us All
Talking of the power of the Olympic flame to bring people together during his speech at the start of the Torino 2006 Olympic Torch Relay, IOC President Jacques Rogge said, “Whether male or female, young or old, able-bodied or disabled, high-level athlete or amateur, whether we live in a wealthy or a developing country, the flame unites us all.”
TORINO 2006
The Olympic Winter Games will run from 10 to 26 February 2006 in Turin. The Winter Games comprise seven different sports and 15 different disciplines, which will be played out in eight different competition sites. Around 2,600 athletes, 650 judges and umpires and one million spectators are expected to participate in this 20th edition of the Winter Games.
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26.02.2006
 Ice hockey-Lidstrom blast gives Sweden gold
TURIN, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Niklas Lidstrom's blistering slapshot early in the third period gave Sweden a 3-2 win over Finland and the gold medal at the men's ice hockey tournament on Sunday in the final event of the Turin Games.
In a tournament that saw the world's biggest hockey nations eliminated in the early going, the Swedes and Finns let their Nordic rivalry take centre stage in a fast-paced game.
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26.02.2006
Ice hockey: Czechs shutout Russia to win bronze
TURIN, Feb 25 (Reuters) - Tomas Vokoun made 28 saves and Martin Erat had a goal and an assist as the Czech Republic shutout Russia 3-0 in the Olympic men's ice hockey bronze medal game on Saturday.
Sweden will face off against Finland in an all-Nordic gold medal final on Sunday that will bring down the curtain on the 2006 Winter Games.
"Playing for the bronze medal is very hard," said Vokoun, who was benched in favour of Milan Hnilicka in the Czechs' 7-3 semifinal loss to Sweden. "We were still disappointed for what happened yesterday against Sweden.
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26.02.2006
Plucky Slutskaya Settles for an Olympic Bronze
As she stood stone-faced on the medals podium, Irina Slutskaya couldn't even manage a smile or a wave.
The bronze medal that was hanging around her neck felt like a lead weight.
For the second Olympics, the Russian star failed as the final skater of the women's free program.
Both times, the gold medal was within reach. Neither time could Slutskaya grab it.
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23.02.2006
Ice Dancers Make It 3 Out of 3 for Russia
Tatyana Navka and Roman Kostomarov made it three out of three for Russian figure skaters at the Winter Olympics.
Navka and Kostomarov gave Russia a gold medal hat trick -- pairs, men's and dance. No nation has swept the four skating events in one games. The Russians could be the first, with Irina Slutskaya highly favored in the women's competition when it was about to begin late Tuesday.
Tanith Belbin and partner Ben Agosto snapped the U.S. medal drought in figure skating with a silver. Elena Grushina and Ruslan Goncharov of Ukraine won the bronze.
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21.02.2006
Ice Dancing: A Good Night for the Russians
Feb 21 2006
Yesterday was the end of ice dancing, in a close contest which elected the new Olympic champions. The gold went to the Russians Tatiana Navka and Roman Kostomarov already unreachable with a record original dance. Their “Carmen”, even though marred with various imperfections, proved otherwise sufficiently seductive to award the performers a score of 101.37 bringing them to a total of 200.64 points, more than enough to ensure the Russian duo reach their objective their sights had been set on for the last few years.
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