Paris 2024 Olympic Flame Lighting Ceremony: Everything you need to know and how to watch live

The 2024 Paris Olympics' flame lighting ceremony is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, April 16. The flame for the upcoming Games will be lit today in Greece, where the inaugural edition of the Summer Olympics took place in 1896.

Once lit, the Olympic flame is brought to the ancient stadium by the Hestiada (the priestess keeper of the fire). The priestess then hands it over to the torchbearer. The torchbearer then passes it over to another torchbearer, who will be from the host country.

So, the first torchbearer will pass on the Olympic flame to the second torchbearer, who will be from France, the nation hosting the 2024 edition of the Olympic games.

The Olympic flame will be carried throughout Greece (the inaugural host nation) across 11 days. Over 550 torchbearers will carry the Olympic flame during the 11-day relay in the country.

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When is the Olympic Flame handover ceremony?

The Olympic flame handover ceremony will take place at the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens on Friday, April 26. The handover ceremony will commence at 17:30 CEST (9:00 pm IST).

Following the handover ceremony, the flame will be taken to the French Embassy in Athens for the night. The next day, the Olympic flame will board the Belem (a famous three-masted ship that first launched in 1896) and will arrive in Marseille on May 8.

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Paris 2024 Olympic Flame Lighting Ceremony: How to watch live?

The Paris 2024 Olympic Flame Lighting Ceremony can be watched live on Olympics.com. The event is scheduled for April 16 at 10:30 CEST (2:00 pm IST). The live coverage of the ceremony will commence at 10:15 CEST (1:45 pm IST).

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