From Marseille to Martinique: Paris Olympics torch relay route unveiled

The organising committee of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games have announced the Olympic flame will be lit on 16 April 2024 at the ancient Greek site of Olympia before arriving in Marseille on 8 May. However, not everyone's happy about the iconic flame's arrival on Gallic shores.

The Olympic flame will be lit on 16 April 2024 at the ancient Greek site of Olympia before arriving in Marseille on 8 May. AFP - PHILIP FONG

From Mont-Saint-Michel to the West Indies to the Château de Versailles – for more than two months from 8 May 2024 – the Olympic flame will pass through more than 400 French towns, a journey that is intended to be "festive" despite threats of disruption by activists.

The official route the flame will take was unveiled this Friday, but not all local authorities have reacted positively to the itinerary, with some believing the cost of welcoming the iconic torch in their town will be excessive.

Nevertheless, the Olympic flame will cross 64 territories over a period of more than two months.

After being lit in Olympia, the torch will spend nine days relaying across Greece before taking the boat to France. 

The flame will cross the Mediterranean aboard the legendary Bélem – one of Europe's oldest three-masted ships – arriving in Marseille on 8 May, to begin its journey that will eventually take it to Paris for the opening of the games on 26 July. 

Sur la Route de #Paris2024​

Le Relais de la Flamme Olympique fera briller nos territoires ! ​

Voici le parcours de 68 jours de fête et de célébrations en France.​

Pour plus de détails sur les villes traversées, on passe le relais aux départements 👇 pic.twitter.com/u4uLKjlH0n

— Paris 2024 (@Paris2024) June 23, 2023

The Eiffel Tower

However, the venue for the lighting of the Olympic cauldron in Paris has still not officially been decided, and the Eiffel Tower – which has been mentioned several times – has not been confirmed by Paris 2024 committee boss Tony Estanguet.

The flame will travel through five French Overseas Territories and 400 towns, 65 of which will close each stage with concerts and sporting events.

As is the custom with the Tour de France, the Olympic flame will be treated with the respect of a Head of State and will be accompanied by a caravan of sponsors.

And also emulating the Tour de France, it will visit some of France's most emblematic and iconic sites.

• Olympics torch relay will involve 10,000 runners, travel across France

After arriving in Marseille, it will pass through a number of towns across the south of France before passing through the Pyrénées-Atlantiques region and then northwards towards Brittany. 

After passing through historic Mont-Saint-Michel, the flame will head to France's most westerly region of Finistere, where it will be taken on one of the fastest sailing boats in the world from the port city of Brest to the West Indies for nine days, before returning to mainland France.

As for the torchbearers – whose selection process is still under way – there will be 10,000 of them, including some 3,000 in groups.

It's estimated that each torchbearer will carry the flame for around four minutes over a distance of some 200 metres.  

⛵ C'est à bord du Maxi Banque Populaire XI qu'Armel Le Cléac'h embarquera la flamme olympique le 7 juin prochain à Brest en direction de la Guadeloupe et de la Martiniquehttps://t.co/jk0xDTzcyg

— RMC Sport (@RMCsport) June 23, 2023

High security

The Olympic flame has not passed through France since 2008 in Paris, an occasion that turned into a fiasco.

The torch's passage through the French capital was marred by numerous incidents, against a backdrop of tensions between Beijing – the organiser of the Olympic Games – and Tibet, whose many supporters came along the route to denounce Chinese oppression. 

• Paris 2024 Olympics security chief resigns over 'inappropriate behaviour'

And the issue of security around the torch relay has recently become a little more pressing.

The Paris 2024 Olympic Committee have reportedly taken "very seriously" several threats hanging over the torch relay, particularly because of the social climate created by controversial government pension reforms and numerous calls to disrupt the route.

The committee assured that the flame would be protected by a "travelling security bubble" that would protect the flame and its bearers.

The Paris 2024 Olympic Games will be held from 26 July to 11 August 2024.