Olympic flame to be carried by 41 runners in Dublin
Eurovision hopefuls Jedward, former footballer Paul McGrath, and Tony Sutherland, the father of the late Olympic boxer Darren, are among the latest list of relay runners revealed.
The Olympic Council of Ireland said 41 torchbearers will take part in a six-hour dash that will include a cross-border ceremony, a civic event, a run on the Skyline roof at Croke Park, and a relay around the city.
Organisers said the short, symbolic visit will reflect the success of the peace process and the all-island make-up of the Irish team for the Games.
Pat Hickey, the council’s president, said the event — on Jun 6 — will bring the spirit of the London Games to Dublin.
“It has taken many, many months of lobbying at the highest international levels to get the permission required to bring the relay south,” he said.
“All along, we have had the full support of Sebastian Coe, chairman of LOCOG, the London Games organising committee, for this move.”
The Olympic torch’s tour of Ireland begins in east Belfast on Sunday, Jun 3, when 400 torchbearers will begin a four-day relay around Northern Ireland.
There will be a short ceremony near the border as the torch travels to the Republic, with the hand-over between Irish Olympic boxing legends Wayne McCullough, from Belfast, and Michael Carruth, from Dublin.
President Michael D Higgins will greet the first Dublin torchbearer in a ceremony outside the offices of the Olympic Council in Howth.
The convoy, which will include a vehicle with a miner’s lantern holding the original Olympic Flame from Olympia in Greece, will move on to Croke Park before the first leg of the city relay starts.
The torch will pass historical sites including the Garden of Remembrance, GPO, Custom House, St Patrick Cathedral, Christchurch and Dublin Castle before arriving at St Stephen’s Green and going back to Northern Ireland.
Ireland’s most famous Olympian, 77-year-old runner Ronnie Delany, 71-year-old paralympian Anne Ebbs, rugby star Shane Horgan, boxer Kenny Egan, suicide prevention worker Joan Freeman, and John Collins, who will represent the Traveller community, will all be part of the relay team.
