The Olympic Flame lighting and handover are scheduled to start this week. The events will be without spectators. The reason is that the number of infections are 'surging' in Greece. Local officials wanted to postpone the ceremony to May, but were refused by the Olympic committee. The 'sacred flame' gets lit in Olympia, and the handover takes place in Athens, and then it makes its journey to Japan.
What will happen with the journey? It starts in Olympia and ends with the lighting of the Olympic cauldron during the opening ceremony of the Olympic games. Do you know how many people are involved in the torch relay? Hundreds in Greece and around 10,000 people in Japan. One article claims that the torch is not handed between runners, but rather the flame of one lights the next, meaning limited human contact.
"The Olympic torch was designed by Tokujin Yoshioka and unveiled 19 March 2019; the design is inspired by cherry blossoms, with 5 petal-shaped columns around the tip of the torch, and a rose-gold "sakura gold" color finish. Their construction will incorporate aluminium recycled from unused shelters deployed in the aftermath of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami."
The Olympics opening ceremony is July 24th. It seems close now, doesn't it? What is your guess on the spread of the coronavirus - will it have slowed by then? I wonder what will tip the Olympics being cancelled. Late May is the deadline that has been given by Dick Pound, not the president of the organization. He says it will not be cancelled. There's something so add to our watch list.
I was out in the garden yesterday doing work in the warm weather. Here is the garden in early July a few years ago. This presentation is produced from my portfolio at Fine Art America.
