The Olympic Flame
The Olympic Flame is a torch that is lighted prior to the start of the Olympic games every year and signifies the start of the competition. It is extinguished once the Games are completed. This tradition of the Olympic games had its origins, as did the Games themselves in ancient Greece. It is very interesting that this tradition has survived for so many years and continues to thrive to this day. What is the significance of the Flame and why is it so important to the Olympics? A few reasons come to mind in answer to this question because some people out there might say that this lighting of the Flame has nothing to do with the actual Games themselves while others might say the Flame or Torch is an integral part of the Olympics.
Wikipedia gives some interesting facts about the Flame, “Commemorating the theft of fire from the Greek god Zeus by Prometheus, its origins lie in ancient Greece. The fire was reintroduced at the 1928 Summer Olympics. The Olympic Torch today is ignited several months before the opening celebration of the Olympic Games at the site of the ancient Olympics in Olympia, Greece,” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympic_Flame).
What is very interesting about these facts is that it seems to be that the Olympic games would not be the Olympic Games today without the Flame or Torch that precedes the start of every one of the Olympics. Would the situation be the same if it were a little animal that was reared and then brought from one place to another to start the proceedings of the Games? I think it would, it is just that because of the length of time that this practice has been going on that the Flame has become inseparable from the Games.
The good thing about the lighting of the Torch is that it keeps the ancient tradition and historical relevance of the modern Olympic games alive. It stands to reason that a young child will probably ask its parents what the significance of the Flame is and maybe a parent will recount the great story of how the Flame originated. The child gets an education lesson in history and mythology just from a simple Flame, so that has to count for something.
Traditions and practices steeped in culture give many modern practices and events a certain character that is missing in so many places and events these days. By having something like the Flame, makes the Olympic Games what they are today and if it was taken away the Games would probably not have the same sort of impact with people that it does now.
Another thing that the Olympic Flame does for the overall Olympic games is that it adds more flavour and character to an already heavy spectacle of sports. One major reason why people enjoy and love watching the Olympic games and why they have become so popular in modern times is because the Games, since the time of their conception in ancient Greece have always been a spectator sport. In those days the Games were a lot more intense than today’s games with a lot of events like sprinting, discus throwing and violent chariot racing all being a part of them.
Even then the spirit of competition and the whole event being a spectator focused one was retained. This fact is why today there are a lot of things done besides the actual events of the Games in order to promote viewership and keep the spectators interested. On that note then the lighting of the Olympic Flame and things like the very popular opening and closing ceremonies of the Games are all vitally important parts of the modern spectacle aspect of the Olympics.
Without the Flame would the Olympics still be the same as they are today, would it still be such a popular event that is watched all over the world? The answer is probably yes, it still would, but with the Flame being such an integral part of it, the whole event becomes elevated in the eyes of the spectators and it retains its sense of character. So in that regard the Flame is a vital and very important part of the modern Olympic games.
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