Tibet protests threaten future Olympic torch relays

By Karolos Grohmann

ATHENS (Reuters) - Organizers of this year's Beijing Olympics global torch relay were forced to extinguish the symbolic torch at least twice by pro-Tibet protesters in London and Paris which disrupted the sporting ceremony.

While this was not the first time an Olympic torch was snuffed out during a relay, it was the first time that organizers put one out as a precaution when protesters opposing China's policy in Tibet grabbed the torch.

As a result, the International Olympic Committee has said it will consider whether to hold such extensive international legs. Some IOC officials say the relay should revert to its initial role, linking ancient Olympia with the city hosting the Games.

The Olympic flame itself is never completely extinguished in the relay as two lamps, lit from the original flame of Olympia, accompany the relay and help light thousands of torches carried by bearers who include celebrities, politicians and athletes.

The torch's 72-year history, starting just months before the 1936 Berlin Olympics, is an engineering work in progress as technicians seek the perfect flame.

There was no relay in the ancient Games in Olympia, although there were several burning flames at those Games as well as flame races at the Panathenian Games to honor deities including Zeus and Prometheus, who, legend has it, stole fire from the gods and brought wisdom and knowledge to humankind.

The torch relay was introduced in 1936 and the first torch, constructed by the Krupp steel and munitions company, crucial to Adolf Hitler's war preparations, used solid fuel skewered on a needle inside the torch to burn the flame after it was lit from the sun's rays via a parabolic mirror in ancient Olympia.

The torch's general features have stayed more or less the same since then. It must be light enough to carry and must have a stable and visible burning system that will not singe the runner's hair or hands and will allow for media coverage.

That has not always been the case though.

The torch conceived for the 1968 Mexico City Games may arguably have been the most stylish one, but sparks flew during runs and the torch itself became too hot to handle, forcing organizers to quickly replace it with a modified version.

The Barcelona 1992 Games torch was also problematic, its plastic parts melting in the hands of several runners.

Torches in recent Games, including Beijing, have switched to using gas cartridges that allow greater control of the flame's size and color and are safer for runners.

BACKUP FLAMES

The Beijing torch burns on environmentally-friendly propane and its flame can last up to 15 minutes. Every torchbearer has a separate torch which they can purchase at the end of their run.

"(The gas) is composed of carbon and hydrogen. No material, except carbon dioxide and water remain after the burning, eliminating any risk of pollution," the Beijing Games organizing committee said on its Web site.