Rio 2016 Olympic Torch Relay to showcase diverse beauty of Brazil

Alex Ferro Photo of students holding cards with
relay host cities

The Rio 2016 Olympic Torch Relay will begin on 3 May, but a taste of the colour and excitement that it will spread around Brazil was experienced in Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday (24 February). In a celebratory event held alongside the Rio 2016 headquarters, the full relay route, the first torchbearers and the uniform they will wear were revealed to the sound of forró music accompanied by dancers on stilts.

Children weaved among the dancers, proudly holding aloft the names of all 329 towns and cities that will host the relay which will visit all five regions of Brazil between 3 May and  5 August, reaching 90 per cent of the population. Despite a hot summer sun that produced 40-degree heat, it was an energetic and multicultural celebration, as the relay and the Games themselves are expected to be.

Rio 2016 Olympic mascot Vinicius was the first to model the torchbearers uniform, showing off his samba skills in front of the gathered crowds and media. Brazilian judoka Érika Miranda, who was selected by Rio 2016 to be a torchbearer, also donned the white, yellow and green outfit, alongside others who have been invited to carry the torch by the relay partners Coca-Cola, Nissan and Bradesco.

Read more  on official Rio de Janeiro 2016 site

Check List of towns and cities