The Olympic flame began a final swing through the suburbs of Athens on Thursday before a journey after dusk up the Acropolis Hill to the 2Â 500-year-old Parthenon, the icon of Athens’s ancient glory.
The flame left the port of Piraeus, where it had spent the night after arriving on an ancient Athenian warship — or trireme — for a trip down greater Athens’s coastline past newly built Olympic venues to the ancient Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion.
After being carried by 247 torch bearers, it will head for the Acropolis for an official reception by the Greece president and prime minister. It will leave the Acropolis on Friday for a short trip north to the opening ceremony at the Olympic Stadium.
Home from a worldwide journey, Athens’s Olympic flame arrived in the capital on Wednesday for a neighbourhood tour that organisers hope will spur a late recovery in ticket sales for the games. Officials said they have sold half of the 5,3-million available tickets.
As the flame travelled around ancient monuments and through blue-collar districts, thousands of Athenians turned out to cheer local celebrities and ordinary volunteers whose relay on Wednesday covered part of the original marathon course and a dozen neighbourhoods.
Folk dance troupes, brass bands and women dressed as ancient Greek priestesses joined flag-waving onlookers in greeting the relay runners all day.
Before stopping for the night, the flame was carried on the replica of a 2Â 500-year-old Greek warship to Piraeus, where ferries blared their horns in a deafening welcome chorus.
”This was really something. I’m so glad I took part,” Greek pop singer Anna Vissi said after her 400m run.
”It’s like I was carrying a piece of Greece with me. I love it.”
Former American track star Carl Lewis and supermodel Naomi Campbell will take turns to carry the flame.
Since being lit March 25 by the sun’s rays at Ancient Olympia — birthplace of the ancient Games — the flame has travelled an unprecedented 78Â 000km through 26 countries on a chartered jet named Zeus, including first-time appearances in Africa and South America.
Highlights included stops at the Great Wall of China and the host of celebrities handed the wood-and-titanium torch, from soccer legend Pele and Hollywood star Tom Cruise to South African statesman Nelson Mandela.
The Greek leg through 29 cities and six major archaeological areas could provide a last-minute boost in Olympic enthusiasm, hurt by years of difficulties caused by construction delays and security fears.
”People really feel that the Games have arrived … The torch relay has created a great atmosphere,” said Marton Simitsek, a senior Games official who ran on Wednesday. — Sapa-AP
Special Report: Olympics 2004