Students' Own Torch Relay

The Olympic flame is a longstanding tradition that dates to the Ancient Games, where a fire was lit and maintained for the duration of the competitions.  In the modern era, the flame was reintroduced at the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics, and the idea of an Olympic torch -- and relay -- sprung from the Nazi-inspired propagandist pageantry and symbolism of the 1936 Berlin Olympics.  Each successive OCOG, or Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games, has designed its own torch in a style of its choosing, which is used in a relay that culminates in Olympic Stadium during the Opening Ceremonies.  Here, Marisa Harris gets her chance at being an Olympic torch bearer after it was passed to her by Emily Savino, while Lauren Silvis (at left) eagerly awaits her turn.  This particular torch is from the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.