Had it been a Broadway show it would undoubtedly have received rave reviews. Against a backdrop of a cloudless blue sky, London's Olympic Flame was lit in the temple of Hera in Ancient Olympia.

It was a ceremony which touched everyone who saw it, including 2012 chairman Lord Coe. It was his first visit to Olympia since he came as a young man after competing in the European Junior Championships.

"I didn't go back with the team, but came down on the train from Athens and found myself and just wandered around and did the tourist bit," he said. "I'd never been back since until now."

This time Coe went for a dawn run in Olympia, hours before the Flame came to life.


"I've carried the torch twice, in South London in 2004 towards Athens and in Vancouver in 2010," he said. "The thing I remember is the stories I heard on the bus. We boarded at around 4 am on the day of the Opening Ceremony in Vancouver and listening to people who had really made big changes in their lives was exciting."

The first bars of the Olympic Anthem by Spiros Samaras rang out across the ancient stadium to begin the 2012 Flame ceremony. It was played at the Opening Ceremony of the first Olympics of the modern era in 1896. The King of Greece, no less, demanded an encore.

This piece of music has particular resonance for Coe. In the wake of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, it was played instead of "God Save the Queen" when he won his first Olympic 1500 metres gold medal in Moscow at the 1980 Games.

"It was an odd medal ceremony, we weren't involved in any of the ceremonial, the protocol for us was literally one representative in the Olympic Stadium at the Opening Ceremony which was [Chef de Mission] Dick Palmer, we didn't have a delegation walking in, no Union flags no national anthems, and medals were handed out to the strains of the Olympic Anthem."

The aim of the 2012 ceremony was an ethereal atmosphere which recalled  ancient civilisations and it certainly succeeded.


The priestesses performed a "Dance of the Nymphs". Then the 14 heralds took centre stage on the hillside for a Pyrrhic dance. In ancient times, such a dance would have been performed with weapons. Here to promote peace, there were none.

Musician Michalis Messinis had composed a special suite to accompany the dancing. He worked closely with ceremony director Artemis Igniatou over the last 18 months to painstakingly marry music to the choreography.

"We had many meetings and talked about what we were going to do over and over," he said. "We worked out some sequences using the flute, harp and cello. These instruments must be played in a particular way to achieve the sound of antiquity that we were looking for."

International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Jacques Rogge had received the freedom of Olympia on the eve of the ceremony. He was joined  by IOC Executive Board member Sir Craig Reedie, British Olympic Association chairman Colin Moynihan and Britain's London 2012 Chef de Mission Andy Hunt and deputy  Jan Paterson.

It was all a far cry from the ceremony in 1948 when Torch Relay organiser Bill Collins braved a civil war in Greece to reach Olympia. Organising Committee chairman Lord Burghley stayed in London and the ceremony was low key in the extreme.


Even before the first torch was lit, the 2012 flame briefly blew out whilst it was being carried toward the stadium by the senior priestess or Estiada Nefeli Mastradi . She was forced to beat a hasty retreat to replenish it. It was fortunate they always keep a flame in reserve for such contingencies. It made a curious parallel with the last time it headed for London in 1948 when it went out within minutes of arriving on British soil at Dover.. One torchbearer  back then described it as "a spring loaded firework".

Organisers will be hoping there is no repetition in 2012 when it touches down at RNAS Culdrose on May 18.

Rio 2016 Organising Committee President Carlos Nuzman had an opportunity to sample the special torch relay atmosphere at an early stage of London's torch relay. He was torchbearer number four.

"In four years we will be here to have our Flame, and to remember this moment very special," said Nuzman. "The Games really feel closer for us now. We'll get a lot of inspiration from London, not only for the design of the torch, but for everything."

Constantine, the former King of Greece and 1960 Olympic sailing champion  was also there to witness the departure of the flame. He was no stranger to Olympia,and had participated in the Flame ceremonies in both 1960 and 1964.

London is the first city to twice receive the flame from Olympia for the Summer Games.  Innsbruck also had a relay from here in 1964 and 1976 for the Winter Games. By a twist of fate, the Olympic flame burned in Innsbruck earlier this year for the Winter Youth Olympic Games.

Philip Barker, one of the world's most renowned sports historians, is the author of The History of the Olympic Torch, published by Amberley last month. To order a copy click here.