The people of Martinique already enjoyed the opportunity to celebrate the Olympic Torch yesterday evening, after its arrival on the trimaran Maxi Banque Populaire XI sailed by the duo of skippers Armel Le Cleac’h and Sebastian Joseaccompanied by Tony Estanguetpresident of the Paris 2024 organizing committee, and four abroad athletes Laura Flessel, Coralie Balmy, Kéni Pipérol-Dampied and Thomas Debierre. Sunday’s celebrations concluded with the lighting of the celebratory cauldron in Fort-de-France by the Olympic swimming champion Coralie Balmy. Having celebrated the end of the day in style, Martinique also saw the next stage on Monday! The route was designed to promote the extraordinary variety of this paradise of nature and biodiversity. From the ocean to the volcanoes, from the beaches to the forests, Martinique is also recognized as a World Biosphere Reserve.
From Montagne Pelée to the best beaches
The day began atop the island’s most iconic natural site: the Paris 2024 Olympic Flame was lit on the Montagne Pelée volcano at dawn, under the watchful eye of Tony Estanguet, for a moment full of emotions! Throughout the day, the Olympic Torch Relay illuminated the island’s spectacular natural sites. The volcanoes, forests and peaks in the north of the island were listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in September 2023.
Many relay races took place in the narrow Passe de l’Écurie, a narrow sea passage where the people of Martinique like to participate in sailing yoles, a local type of boat. The Olympic Torch Relay also crossed the tie bar connecting the island to the islet of Sainte-Marie.
The municipalities that contribute to the island’s dynamism and reputation were proud. The Olympic Torch Relay visited Lamentin, the island’s second largest town, the Pierre Samot Aquatic Center and the Stade Georges Gratiant Stadium. He also headed to Saint-Esprit – particularly the Georges Gabriel cultural center – and Saint-Pierre, the “little Paris of the West Indies”, a city destroyed by the eruption of Montagne Pelée in 1902. In the municipality of Le Diamant, the Olympic A torch lit Cap 110, the monument dedicated to slavery, before the journey ended in Schoelcher and then Fort-de-France.
The capital of Martinique, the nerve center of the island, was in the spotlight for a second night. The route took in the Louis Achille Sports Complex, the Lycée Schoelcher High School, the Saint Louis Cathedral, the Aimé Césaire Museum Complex, the Schoelcher Library and La Savane Park. He then headed to Le Malecon, the focus of so many sporting and cultural events and the place of celebration where the cauldron of celebration was lit.
A collegiate relay dedicated to basketball at Saint-Esprit
The day also saw the spotlight turn on basketball. The first collegiate relay by the French Basketball Federation was held in the municipality of Saint-Esprit. The FFBB highlighted Martinique’s commitment to training a large number of basketball players, some of whom have helped the French national teams shine. In addition, the federation wanted to give maximum promotion to the development of 3-a-side basketball. This relay was led by a young prodigy Lucas Dufealwho was crowned European champion with the French under-20 team last year.
At the same time, about a hundred torchbearers took turns throughout the day to carry the Olympic Torch. All the people of Martinique gave a warm welcome to the last torchbearer, a singer Jocelyne Béroard, who is famous as a member of Kassav’, the famous creole juke band. She is the first West Indian woman to achieve gold record success and also received the Timi Trophy for Best Afro-West Indian Actress. Also present today are champions from Martinique, with an athlete Louis Vaillanta member of the French athletics team that has taken part in the Games twice (in Rio in 2016 and in Tokyo in 2021), or Jacques Sicotknown to have swum around Martinique in 11 days and holder of the French swimming record for a distance of 67 km.
As in every scene, members of the general public with inspiring stories to tell were also part of the celebrations. Between them, the spectators were able to cheer Midjina Gambia, the youngest torchbearer of the day (13 years old) who dreams of athletic success. He may have fallen on her Sandrine Gros-Désormeaux-Morjon, the president of a club that fights endometriosis through running and walking. There was also Antonio Jairformer member of the commandos of the French army who is very involved in charity events, especially in the fight against breast cancer.
The unique chapter of the Ocean Relay came to an end at the end of this colorful day, marked by massive crowds along the roads and at the celebration site. For the first time in history, the Olympic Torch Relay traveled to overseas lands to celebrate these champion countries and havens of biodiversity. The Olympic Torch Relay, with official sponsors Coca-Cola, Banque Populaire and Caisse d’Epargne, will soon return to mainland France. On Tuesday, the Olympic Torch will light the Alpes-Maritimes and continue its journey for 34 stages before the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games on July 26 in Paris.
Copyright: Paris 2024 / Marc Agnoly / SIPA PRESS
PROGRAM FOR TUESDAY, JUNE 18
See the full schedule of the scene at https://olympics.com/fr/paris-2024/relais-de-la-flamme-olympique/etapes/alpes-maritimes-nice
Program of the festive area:
Open to the public from 3:30 to 7:45 p.m
Free entry, limited capacity
15:30: opening to the public
4–5:30 pm: local authority activities on the sports field trip
5:45–6:50 p.m.: adventure sports partner activities
7:20–7:30: finish of the last runner
You can find all the photos and videos from the same day Content Library de Paris 2024.
Photo titles are included in photo metadata.
Footage package credit: France Télévisions — Paris 2024 / Credit: IOC
Contact type: medias.relaisdelaflamme@paris2024.org