Cool Works Stories from the Road

Travel & Work Stories

2004 Olympic Torch Relay - “Pass the Flame, Unite the World”

In February of 2004, I kept seeing a commercial on TV of a light coming closer to the shore from under the ocean. As it got to shore, it was a runner in an Olympic uniform was carrying an Olympic torch that was lit. He passed the flame on to a girl, also in an Olympic uniform, holding a torch. There was some narration, and then the question if we would like to learn more how we could carry the Olympic flame this summer to go to a web site that they gave. I’d see that commercial almost every night, several times, so I jotted down the web site. One morning in late February, I was getting ready for work and noticed that web address lying on my desk, so I decided to see what it was all about. It was a web page for Samsung Electronics, and they were looking for interesting stories from across America.

Entrants were to complete the form and provide an original, sincere, and no more than a fifty (50) word statement describing how you have demonstrated one or more of the ATHENS 2004 Olympic Game values described below:

Unity You build bridges between individuals, communities, cultures and generations. You are someone who emphasizes what makes us alike, not what sets us apart.

Human Scale You are someone who believes in the value of the individual – the strength of one person’s deeds and the power of a single expression. You are an extraordinary person who proves that one individual can make a vital difference.

Celebration You are someone who takes joy in life and whose positive attitude lifts the spirits of those around him.

Participation You are someone who knows life is not always about winning, but also about taking part. You actively seek to experience life’s adventures and challenges large and small.

Heritage You are someone who embraces history and culture and passes the lessons learned from one generation to the next, in order to build a brighter future.

It’s amazing how fast you can type 50 words. I just barely got started and the computer stopped typing. I had gotten to 50 words, so I had to condense my story quite a bit. The following is what I submitted:

All eligible entries were judged equally on the following criteria: Quality of Content, Writing Style and Grammar. The top 100 entries were then judged on: Nature of values described by entrant; Originality and Creativity of entry; Sincerity of entry. Only 20 essay entrants were chosen. The contest deadline was February 29, and I think I submitted mine on February 27 th. On March 8, I received an e-mail that said ‘Congratulations.’ I figured they were congratulating me because they had received my entry, but instead it said: Your essay has been judged and we have the pleasure to announce that you have been selected to become one of the Official Torchbearers to carry the Olympic Flame.

Each torchbearer and one companion receive roundtrip coach class air transportation, two nights standard hotel accommodations, transportation between hotel and designated collection point and a total of $100.00 in spending money for the Torchbearer. The estimated value is $2925.00.

I also had to pass a background investigation. I only had 12 hours to respond to the notification that I had won, or forfeit my spot as a Torchbearer. Between March 8 th and June 16 th, there was a lot of communication between Samsung and I either by e-mail, fax, postal mail or phone. Some days I thought it would never all get organized, but amazingly, it did. Samsung was very thorough.

On June 16, my sister, Joletta, and my Aunt Sylvia accompanied me to the airport where we departed for Minneapolis and then on to St. Louis . The way the flight was set up, we didn’t have a minute to spare when we landed in St. Louis, but as luck would have it, we were delayed a whole hour. That was a bad thing for a good reason. I’ll explain.

The plan was to arrive in St. Louis , take a limo to the downtown Marriott, then take the shuttle bus to Washington University for the scheduled events. Because we were an hour late, that plan would not work. When we landed in St. Louis, a limo driver was holding a sign that read "Athens 2004 Torch Relay, Bernie Friedt". I felt so important. Our limo driver was a huge black man wearing the whole uniform that a hoity toity limo driver should wear. He was quite a character too. At one point in our drive, he was asked if it was supposed to rain tomorrow, and he said “that’s still kind of up in the air.” That in itself was funny, but even funnier was the fact that he didn’t realize he’d made a "funny". A lady standing nearby overheard that our driver was for the torch relay, inquired if she, too, could get a ride with us. When they asked her name, she said “Bonnie Blair”, and I said “of course she can ride with us.’ Bonnie is a 5 time Olympic gold medalist, who has since been inducted into the US Olympic Hall of Fame.

We arrived at Washington University where Francis Field was being rededicated; it is the home of the very first Olympics held in the United States , one hundred years ago this year. After the rededication, there was an orientation for the Torchbearers, followed by a reception for the Torchbearers and their guests. I met several other past Olympians at the orientation, including Billy Mills. Several people also thought that I was someone famous, and would come up to me to ask me who I was. Most of them thought I was a jockey. I know I am short, but not jockey short. After the reception, and took a shuttle bus to our hotel. It was almost dark by this time, and we entered the hotel through a side door. I mention this because of this next story.

At about 9:30 I decided to go to the concierge’s desk and ask her what would be the best way to get to the Arch [also known as the Gateway Arch or the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial]. I could tell she was a little bit tired, and possibly tired of being asked that question, but maybe not, because she drawled out in a tired southern accent, “ya could just walk over there.” Turns out it was less than 4 blocks from the hotel, and when you step out the front door, there it is, bigger than life. I felt like an idiot, but I laughed about it anyway, and still do. From our hotel window we could see right into the St. Louis Cardinals dugout in Busch Stadium. There were baseball games there both nights that we were there.

The following morning, June 17, 2004 , we had breakfast at the Pavilion Restaurant in the hotel, compliments of Samsung. I didn’t have any scheduled events until the afternoon, so we took a walk to the Arch. We did the usual tourist things, and took pictures all along the way there. The grounds surrounding the Arch are very nice. Upon entering the visitor center beneath the arch, the sign informed us that the next tram cars to the top would be in an hour. I went to the desk anyway, and told the ticket man that there was a senior citizen, my sister, and a torchbearer for the next tram car. He charged me for two, and told us to go right in. This torchbearer thing was already starting to pay off. The Arch is amazing. The tram ride only takes a few minutes to the top, and once there the view of the city of St. Louis is spectacular, and of course on the other side is the Mississippi River and East St. Louis , Illinois .

We spent 20 minutes at the top of the arch, which is 620 feet above the ground, taking pictures and taking in the sights, then took the tram car back to the bottom. At the edge of the Arch grounds is the Old Cathedral, the Basilica of St. Louis, and we stopped in for a short visit there, then back to the hotel.

The opening ceremonies actually began at noon , so I put on my Olympic Torchbearer uniform and we walked to the Arch again. We were stopped by a beggar on the way, and by a family that wanted to have their children’s picture taken with me. Cool, now my celebrity status was kicking in. At the Arch once again, I met the mayor of St. Louis and had my picture taken with him, then we waited around for the ceremony to begin.

The collection point was at the Boys and Girls Club, and there were 14 torch bearers there and three escort runners. There was supposed to be 15 torch bearers in our group, but one didn’t show up, so the runner before the no show got to run in two spots. [In all, there were 127 torch bearers that day.] We each had an escort runner in the event that we couldn’t carry the torch any longer, or fell, or just needed assistance. Each escort runner assisted 5 torch bearers. At the collection point, group photos were taken, and then we were given our final instructions loaded onto the shuttle bus and driven to the St. Louis University.

At St. Louis University , we waited in the bus because of the heat. They wanted to keep us cool, instead of dropping us all off at our starting point. My starting point was St. Louis University, so I was the first one off the bus. There was a huge crowd gathered there, and I was anxious to get to my spot, but they wanted us to stay on the bus until it was only a minute or two before we started our run. When they finally told me to go, everyone on the bus started cheering and screaming, and when I stepped my foot off the bus into the crowd, the excitement of it all finally hit me, and hit me like a brick. I suddenly had butterflies in the best possible way. It was so exciting. I was then led through the cheering crowd to my starting point. Luckily, I was at one of the best possible spots of the entire torch relay. I was at what they called a ‘Pause Station.’ There were only three of those on the entire route. This meant that the torch was brought in and put in a torch stand for 15 minutes and left to ‘rest’ while the torch entourage was given a break to rest and use the bathroom. A lot of the entourage was security, and they ran along the entire 34 mile route of the relay.

Bonnie Blair was the runner before me, and she brought the flame to the University and placed it in the torch stand. While I waited for the flame to ‘rest’, I was interviewed by European television, which was broadcast in Europe on TV and on a sports web site. I was introduced as ‘one of the more amazing stories of the day.’ After the interview I posed with people who wanted a picture with me, and autographs too. Usually my autograph went right under Bonnie Blair’s.

Each torch only has 20 minutes of fuel, and when Bonnie’s torch started to sputter a little, they asked if I would light my torch from hers and just stand there and hold it. “Of course I would.” When I lit the torch, the crowd went wild, as they say, and it was such an exhilarating feeling. I just stood there smiling and holding the torch for a while, and chatted with people in the crowd. As time approached for me to start my run, security blew their whistles, and the crowd on the sidewalk just magically parted so I would have room to pass. One of the girls from Greece , who was working for the Torch Relay all the way around the world, said that that is the only time that the people moved like that. It never worked like that in other countries.

When time came, they told me that I could go, Deidre (Dee Dee) my escort runner, and I ran up the sidewalk to the street where I started my 400 meter torch run. People lined the street and cheered and took pictures, and I just ran, smiled, and waved to everyone. What an unbelievable feeling. I didn’t notice that it was 87 degrees and the humidity was even higher. I didn’t notice that the torch had some weight too it and my arm should have gotten tired. I didn’t notice that I was running at a good pace, and didn’t even get out of breath. I just ran, and smiled and waved. Thinking back to it even gives me goose bumps. I felt like the King of the Parade, and I guess at that time, I was.

Janice, the lady that I was to pass the flame to, was in a wheelchair, and when I got to the end of my run, they didn’t have her out of the shuttle bus yet, so I got to stand there and wait. Did I mind? Heck no, it just extended my experience that much longer. When they wheeled Janice over, I walked up to her, touched my torch to hers, and the flame jumped across to her torch. I gave her a hug and wished her luck. Dee Dee then pushed Janice in her wheelchair for her 400 meter portion of the relay.

Immediately after that, security took my torch and extinguished it. The European Television crew was there to get my initial reaction to the run. While I was still talking to them, I was whisked onto the following shuttle bus, where my torch was returned to me. I then rode the bus which followed the relay.

At 6 pm we took the shuttle to Washington University and Forest Park where there was an all city party, and where the torch relay was to conclude. We got to eat in the Samsung VIP tent, and that is when we realized just how hungry we were. We hadn’t eaten since breakfast. I had my picture taken holding a torch in front of an Athens Greece backdrop. Once again, being a torchbearer and wearing the torch bearer uniform paid off.

The evening started with live symphony music followed by the MC introducing about 40 past Olympians, most of whom I didn’t recognize. The more memorable ones included Billy Mills, the Native American 1964 gold medalist in the 10,000 meter run. There has been a movie made of his story. Shannon Miller, Bonnie Blair, and Jackie Joyner Kercee were three of the other more famous Olympians. Jackie was not yet up on stage as she was the final torch bearer of the day. After a few short interviews with several of the Olympians, it was announced that the torch was nearing the area. We could tell it was getting closer as the two helicopters that followed the relay all day were getting louder. Soon, the second to the last torch bearer appeared at the top of the hill, passed the flame to Jackie, and she ran it down the hill to the stage area and lit the cauldron. It was a goose bump moment, especially with the Olympic Theme song being played in the background. After a short interview with Jackie, the ceremony ended and fireworks filled the sky.

I watched one of the Olympic people light the travel lanterns for the flame, and then the cauldron was extinguished. The flame was then on it’s way to Atlanta Georgia where the Global Torch Relay would continue the following day, then on to New York, Canada, then Europe. In the elevator of the hotel, I met up with Bonnie Blair once again, and this time I finally asked her for her autograph, and she was happy to oblige.

In the morning, we had breakfast, and took a limo to the airport for the trip back home. At the Minneapolis Airport, people recognized that I was carrying a torch, and asked to take pictures of me. It was fun to be a celebrity for a couple of days.

This was such an awesome experience, and one I won’t soon forget, but one that I will surely try to top. Life goes on.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Bernie e-mailed to say that he was inspired while watching the opening ceremonies in Athens ~ inspired enough to run and put on his torchbearer uniform and grab his torch and become part of the event all over again.
Wish he would have sent a photo of that :)

---

Other stories from the road: 
A Day on the Slopes for Ski Lessons with Tom
Sharing the Road in Europe with Patty
 Teaching English abroad with Ben
Traveling in Korea with Sarah
Sea Kayaking with Joel
A Panama Peace Corps story from Cat

Do you have a fun, happy, sad, adventurous or amazing  work or travel story you’d like to share? If you do and you like to write, send it on and we’ll have a look.  greatjobs@coolworks.com

 

---