Passing the baton
The history of Coca‑Cola’s involvement with the Olympic Torch Relay
It’s an iconic image of our time: an Olympic Flame blazing above a running track, as athletes from around the world compete for gold. Before the opening of the modern Olympic Games, a small torch is lit from the Olympic Flame and relayed, hand to hand, by torchbearers across the world to the new host nation. This is known globally as the Olympic Torch Relay.
Coca‑Cola has been involved with the Olympic Torch Relay since the Barcelona 1992 Olympic Games, helping to spread excitement across the globe before the biggest celebration of international sport. We’ve sponsored the Relay across the continents, seeking to inspire local communities and connect people with the wonder and magic of the Olympic spirit.
Coca‑Cola's involvement in the Relay
Our first sponsorship of the Relay
The Barcelona 1992 Olympic Games marked the debut of the International Olympic Torchbearers Programme, sponsored by Coca‑Cola. For the first time, people from other nations were invited to carry the Olympic Flame in the host country.
Lighting the way in winter
After the success of the initiative at Barcelona during the summer, we invited participants from 13 countries to carry the Flame across 4,971 miles at the Lillehammer 1994 Winter Olympic Games.
The longest Relay in history
When the Olympic Games visited Coca‑Cola’s home town of Atlanta in 1996, we exclusively presented the longest Relay, at that time, in the history of the Olympic Games: 15,000 miles.
More than one path
During the Nagano 1998 Olympic Torch Relay in Japan we sponsored the Olympic Torch Relay, which followed three separate paths to share the experience between the host nation's various islands.
Our tenth anniversary
Coca‑Cola marked a decade of involvement with the Olympic Torch Relay at Salt Lake 2002, by selecting more than 3,500 of the total 11,500 torchbearers for the 65 day spectacle that blazed through 46 American states.
The most far-reaching Relay ever
For the first truly worldwide Relay at the Athens 2004 Olympic Games, the Olympic Flame travelled internationally to more than 30 cities on the five continents represented by the Olympic Rings. The Flame then returned to Greece, birthplace of the Olympic Games.
Promoting active, healthy lifestyles
For the Torino 2006 Winter Olympic Games, Coca‑Cola Italy promoted an anti-obesity project in schools to raise awareness of the importance of healthy eating and exercise. 412 teachers, students and parents around the country were selected as torchbearers.
The highest points on earth
The Beijing 2008 Olympic Torch Relay spanned more than four months and touched five continents. The Olympic Flame was carried up and over Mount Everest, in the Himalayas – one of the highest points on earth.
One million torchbearers
More than one million Canadians applied to be a torchbearer at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games; of those, over 4,500 were nominated for making commitments to lead more active or green lifestyles.
