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The Flame for the European Youth Olympics 2011 to fly from Greece
Thursday January 20 2011 03:14 PM
The flame, which will shine from 13th to 18th February 2011 at the European Youth Olympics (EYOWF) in the Liberec Region, will arrive in the Czech Republic from Greece. From the momentous site where the history of world sport was written, a delegation consisting of organisers will transport the flame to the Festival's location tomorrow. It will be the first time ever the Olympic Flame appears in the Czech Republic.
The Olympic Torch will light the main Olympic Cauldron during the Opening Ceremony of the entire event in Tipsport Arena in Liberec on Sunday, 13th February, personally overseen by the President of the International Olympic Committee Jacques Rogge.
"We have accepted the invitation by the Greek Olympic Committee for the ceremonial reception of the Flame. We are going to uphold the same protocol as for the senior Olympic Games with the Olympic Flame burning, national anthems playing to honour the winner and athletes taking the Olympic Oath," explains Petr Hrubec, Secretary General of the Czech Olympic Committee and member of the delegation.
The five-member delegation left for Athens today. It consists of Roman Kumpošt, President of the Organising Committee, Kateřina Nyčová, the Executive Director, Zdeněk Bursa, councillor of the Liberec Region and Vladimír Richter, Chairman of the Administrative Board of the EYOWF 2011 Public Benefit Corporation.
The ceremonial handing over of the Flame will take place today, i.e. Thursday 20th January at 14:00 local time (13:00 CET) at the Panathinaiko Stadium in Athens, where the first modern Olympic Games were held in 1896. At the end of the ceremony, Spyros Capralos, President of the Greek Olympic Committee, will hand over three special containers with the Olympic Flame to the Czech delegates.
Roman Kumpošt, President of the EYOWF 2011 Organising Committee, commented "Of course, it is an extraordinary event and a great honour for us. Thanks to the European Youth Olympics, the Flame will arrive in the Czech Republic for the first time ever. It will become not only a symbol of the entire competition, but also serve as a motivation and obligation for us to organise this event on the best possible level without any disruptive moments."
On Monday, 24th January, members of the delegation will hand the lanterns over to the President of the Liberec Region and officials of the three host towns - Liberec, Jablonec nad Nisou and Kořenov.
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