Day 03 – Micronesia (24 May, 2000)

Day 03 – Federated States of Micronesia (24 May, 2000)

Unfortunately most of the good images of day 3 in Micronesia have been lost. Of course the not so great ones survived – Murphy’s law!

The Sydney 2000 Olympic Torch Relay continues it's journey through Oceania.
24 May 2000 - 6.25pm,  Federated States of Micronesia
Traditionally dressed men blow shell horns to signal the arrival of the second last torchbearer for the day, Vice President Redley Killion, after canoeing past Sokehs Rock (in the background) to land on Misko Beach . The Olympic torch is spending a day in FSM  on it's way to Sydney  for the opening ceremony of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games
credit - photo Greg Garay/SOCOG

 

Flame Protocol

This image shows a young me  (long hair and all) in my hotel room.

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Babysitting the Flames

Everyone goes to a lot of trouble to keep these little flames burning 24hrs a day from the beginning of the relay in Greece right through until the Opening Ceremony in Sydney. It would be logistically a lot easier to light a new one each morning with a match – but Olympic tradition is strong. And for all the fakery and staged moments, the one true part of the Olympic journey is that this flame is the original flame.

If a torch goes out (by wind or rain or other hiccup) the miners lantern is always on hand to take a new, original flame from. So yes, there are 3 flames at any one time. One on the burning torch and two resting somewhere nearby (usually a security vehicle – or at night in the Flame Security’s hotel room) in the miners safety lanterns. Protocol is to only let the public see one Flame.

There was also a Flame that was sent back to the SOCOG office in Sydney in an additional safety lantern as a ‘disaster insurance’ version in case we really screwed up with the backups on the road. But I never saw it and never heard anything about whether it really was kept alight back in the SOCOG offices.

Outtakes:

Command Chief Barry blending in with the local culture on the tarmac at FSM
Command Chief Barry blending in with the local culture on the tarmac at FSM

See the Day 3 – Micronesia Photo Gallery here…

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