Carrying the flame

Carrying the flame
Using data to help tell the Olympic torch relay's story across time

The Olympics roll around every two years like clockwork and so do the boilerplate news stories about the Olympic torch relay. “Carrying the flame” seeks to provide better resources for covering the relay, while also publishing compelling stories and graphics that explore its history through data and records. A wealth of records and documents lie in online repositories that could inform innovative, engaging storytelling about the relay. This project works to aggregate that information and make it digestible.

What follows is a look at the Olympic torch relay that goes beyond updates of where it has visited.
The project is home to a unique, comprehensive dataset about the relay that details miles crossed, transportation methods, torchbearer counts, torchbearer gender and more.
Read more about the project.

A relay's legacy

How a core tradition of the Olympics rose out of Nazi Germany. The Olympic torch relay is no stranger to trouble. Even widely celebrated traditions can rise out of controversial origins.

Photo: stanford.edu

Going the distance

Thousands of miles by foot, car, boat, horse and space shuttle. These and other numbers help tell the story of the relay and answer questions.

Illustration: Stacie Kammerling

Gender and the relay

In 80 years, no woman has been the first to carry the ceremonial flame down the mountain in Olympia, Greece, signifying the start of the torch relay.

Illustration: Alan Hovorka

What others wrote - Repository

A comprehensive list of columns, media, research docs and info useful for covering the relay in a more meaningful, interesting way.

Get the data

I've posted the dataset used in this project online on my Github. If you use it, give me a shout out. See an issue in it? Post a new issue on the Github repo or send me an email.
Data version: 1.00

About the project

How this project came to be and the people that made it happen.

Submit feedback

See an error, something I missed in my reporting or just want to tell me how much you like this work? Let me know!
This is an ongoing project that I will periodically update with new data visualizations and information.

Stories and data by Alan Hovorka
Design by Alan Hovorka, Tyson Bird and Stacie Kammerling
Illustrations by Stacie Kammerling and Alan Hovorka
Code by Alan Hovorka and Tyson Bird
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About the project
View the project on Github

All images used in this project were published in the public domain or under Creative Commons.
The work on this website is for noncommercial, educational purposes and is not associated with the International Olympic Committee or any Olympic properties.