(ATR) Rio 2016 tells Around the Rings the 2016 Olympic torch relay will be the "biggest party Brazil has ever seen."
The organizing committee released the full torch relay schedule on Feb. 24. The torch will travel to 329 cities across the country over 95 days visiting all 26 states.
Rio 2016 delayed the announcement of the torch route to ensure the logistics of such an expansive travel itinerary and to offer a twist for the local population.
"Everything is ready, but Brazilians love surprises so we were banking on the surprise," Mario Andrada, head of communications at Rio 2016, said to ATR.
"We’ve been four times to every single city. We signed off with all the cities, checked all the scenarios and decided everything that is going to take place in Switzerland."
The Olympic flame for 2016 will be lit in Olympia, Greece on Apr. 21. The Hellenic Olympic Committee is in charge of the flame lighting ceremony, as well as the itinerary in Greece. IOC President Thomas Bach, Greece President Prokopis Pavlopoulos, Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes, and Rio 2016 President Carlos Nuzman.
On Apr. 27, a handover ceremony will give full control of the Olympic flame to Rio organizers. They will take the flame from Greece to Lausanne to visit the Olympic Museum and to Geneva to pay a visit to the United Nations office. After the Swiss leg, the Olympic Torch Relay will begin in Brasilia on May 3.
After the nearly 100 day journey, the flame will end the trip with a two day tour of Rio de Janeiro on Aug. 4-5 before the final stop at the Olympic Cauldron concluding the Olympic opening ceremony.
The theme of the torch relay is Carnaval, and organizers hope to bring the energy and spirit from Rio’s annual celebration to all corners of the country.
"Brazil is kind of a big country to be honest," Andrada added. "We have pockets of carnaval in some cities, but this time we will bring it to the whole country. There are a lot of Brazils, so if you go to Salvador and then the next day to Porto Alegre it is like completely different country. Adapting to each local reality may be our biggest challenge."
Andrada added that there is no worry for torchbearers possibly being exposed to the zika virus while participating in the relay outdoors because the organizing committee "will protect them like everybody else" with mosquito repellent.
Olympic mascot Vinicius modeled the uniform that all torch bearers will wear during the ceremony. Judoka Erika Miranda, the first torchbearer named by the Rio 2016 organizing committee, carried the Olympic torch outside Rio 2016 headquarters wearing the gold and white uniform that 12,000 others will wear all over Brazil. The appointment of Miranda symbolizes all female Brazilian athletes according to the committee
Torch relay sponsors Bradesco, Coca-Cola, and Nissan named five torchbearers who will participate at some point during the journey. Rio 2016 says they will announce the torchbearers at the beginning of each stop during the relay.
Written by Aaron Bauer in Rio de Janeiro
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