MARSEILLE, France - Following the arrival of the Olympic torch at the Vieux Port the day before, the relay kicked off its first stop on French soil in Marseille on Thursday which was imbued with elements of football club Olympique de Marseille.
Basile Boli, the former French international who scored the winning goal in the 1993 Champions League final for Marseille, served as the day's first torchbearer, starting the relay from the iconic Basilica of Notre-Dame de la Garde.
"It makes the heart beat and it's fantastic," said Boli. "It's the Olympic flame, it's the symbol of sport, of living together, of everything we can hope for in the world."
Boli then handed it over to Colette Cataldo, an 83-year-old Olympique de Marseille supporter, in a symbolic and emotionally charged moment.
About 200 torchbearers participated in the relay in the port city, with France's former NBA superstar Tony Parker also among them.
Former Cote d'Ivoire international Didier Drogba, a legendary player for football club Olympique de Marseille, was the final torchbearer of the day and lit the Olympic cauldron just outside the Stade Velodrome to conclude the day's relay
"The start is important in sport," said Paris 2024 president Tony Estanguet after the beginning of the relay. "We got off to a good start... now it's on."
"Let's go for a fantastic celebration."
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The climax of the relay took place at the Stade Velodrome, the home of Olympique de Marseille, as Jean-Pierre Papin, the 1991 Ballon d'Or winner, began the relay at this renowned venue.
Former Cote d'Ivoire international Didier Drogba, a legendary player for Marseille, was the final torchbearer of the day and lit the Olympic cauldron just outside the stadium to conclude the day's relay.
"It's fantastic to give that sense of pride to the French people and to show to the whole world what we're capable to achieve," said France's Sports Minister Amelie Oudea-Castera.
"We're going to give happiness to the whole world."
A major innovation of the Paris Olympic torch relay is the introduction of the collective torchbearer, where multiple torchbearers act as one leg of the relay.
Liu Jia, an Austrian of Chinese descent and former member of Austria's national table tennis team, joined over 20 other athletes from various European countries as part of a "collective torchbearer" group.
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"Being a torchbearer alongside so many athletes from other countries feels incredibly unique, and it also demonstrates our more unified Olympic spirit," said Liu.
