(ATR) The cauldron from the 1996 Olympics will be re-lit for a few hours this Saturday during the 2020 U.S. Olympic marathon trials in Atlanta.
The course begins in front of Centennial Olympic Park and will run under the cauldron and past the Centennial Olympic Stadium, now owned by Georgia State University and principally used as the home for the school’s football team.
The marathon finish line is inside Centennial Olympic Park in downtown Atlanta.
The Olympic Cauldron, which was moved down the street from the stadium after the 1996 Games ended, will be lit on Saturday at noon and remain lit until approximately the end of the marathon trials at 3:30 p.m.
Georgia State Stadium, previously Centennial Olympic Stadium before becoming Turner Field, hosted the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the 1996 Olympics, along with all of the track and field events. Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, which was across the street, hosted baseball during the Centennial Games before it was demolished in 1997.
Georgia State, which bought the former Olympic stadium and the surrounding property in 2017, plans to build a new baseball field where Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium once stood.
Marathon Trials Preview
More than 700 runners will be competing for Team USA’s six spots. The top three finishers in the men’s and women’s races will make the cut even if they fail to meet the official Olympic qualifying time.
On the men’s side, Rio 2016 bronze medalist Galen Rupp is considered the favorite. Jared Ward made the 2016 Olympic team and is expected to be in the mix this time around. Bernard Lagat is the oldest men’s competitor at age 45 as he tries to make a sixth Summer Games.
Perry Reeves Shoemaker, a 48-year-old preschool teacher, is the oldest woman in the trials. Shoemaker did not begin training and racing until she was 40.
She is not expected to finish in the top three. Desiree Linden, the only member of the Rio 2016 team in the field on Saturday, is considered one of the contenders for a 2020 spot.
Written by Gerard Farek
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