Events Blog

 

 

The Sydney 2000 Olympic Games Torch Relay

Saturday June 24, 2000 is a day I will never forget.  I grabbed the once in a lifetime opportunity by going up with my father to the main sporting ground of Ayr called Rugby Park, where the Burdekin Roosters play rugby league.  Rugby Park was the venue of the lunch stopover of the Olympic Flame Torch Relay, before arriving at Townsville that night.

During the Lunch stopover at Ayr, I had lunch there at Rugby Park, while waiting for the flame to arrive.  After a while after the torch arrived in the sporting ground, it was subsequently lit on the caldron for about 40 minutes while at the stopover.  There was entertainment of all kinds, and thousands of people from the Burdekin area, to celebrate the one in a lifetime event.

Even though I didn't run in the relay, I still had the chance to hold a torch for a few minutes as did most people who attended the relay, and so I did.  It was a fitting honor to hold the torch, even more so for me, as I live in a small country town.  I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the flame being lit on the caldron for real.  I thought I was watching it on television, but no.  It was for real, and it is surely a once in a lifetime event I will remember for the rest of my life.

See Photos of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games Relay at Ayr in the Photo Gallery

William Walker