Piraeus, Greece (AFP) – The Olympic torch spent the night at the French embassy in Athens on Saturday before starting its journey to France aboard the Belem, which departed from the Greek port of Piraeus.
Publication of:
1 minute
“This feeling is very special. It's very emotional for me,” Paris Olympics chief organizer Tony Estinguett told reporters before the ship departed.
He hailed the “amazing coincidence” of how Belem was launched just weeks after the first modern Olympic Games were held in Athens in 1896.
The 19th-century three-masted ship, including the Greek Navy's trireme Olympias and 25 sailing ships, set sail from the port of Piraeus, with dozens of people watching from behind the railings for safety reasons. Ta.
“We came here to help the children understand that the Olympic ideal was born in Greece. It's really moving,” she says as the ship begins its voyage with her two children. Giorgos Kontopoulos, who watched the incident, told AFP.
On Sunday, the ship will pass through the Corinth Canal. This is a feat of his 19th century engineering, built with the contributions of French banks and engineers.
Belém is scheduled to arrive in Marseille, where the Greek colony was founded around 600 B.C., on May 8.
Greece handed over the 2024 Olympic torch to Estangue in a ceremony on Friday.
Greek Olympic Committee President Spiros Kapraros handed over the torch to Estanguet at the Panathenaic Stadium, where the 1896 Olympics were held.
Estingue said Paris' goal is to host “a grander but more responsible Games that contributes to a more inclusive society.”
Estanguet, who represented France and won gold in canoe slalom at the 2004 Athens Olympics, said organizers are ensuring that “the world's biggest event plays an accelerating role in tackling the critical issues of our time.” He said he was thinking of doing so.
French champion duo Gabriela Papadakis, Beijing 2022 ice dance gold medalist, and former swimmer Beatrice Hess, one of the most successful Paralympic athletes in history, carried the torch during the final leg of the relay to the Panathenaic Stadium.
Nana Mouskouri, an 89-year-old Greek singer with fans all over the world, sang the national anthems of France and Greece at the ceremony.
© 2024 AFP
