After taking off from a Russian manned base in Kazakhstan, the Torch spent several days in Outer Space on a tour highlighted by a spacewalk in the hands of cosmonauts Oleg Kotov and Sergey Ryazansky.

The preservation of the exact same Torch is a move set to add to the drama of the Opening Ceremony where Russian officials will continue a tradition where "each host country strives to make the lighting Ceremony the most spectacular and memorable".

The lighting of the Olympic Cauldron is traditionally the highlight of the Opening Ceremony and the identity of the torchbearer lighting the flame is traditionally a well-kept secret.

At Beijing 2008, for example, Chinese Olympic champions from various years passed the Olympic Flame in a sequence before, after travelling around the entire stadium, the Flame lit the Cauldron.

The Olympic Flame is lit in the "Bird's Nest" Stadium during Beijing 2008 ©Bob Thomas/Getty Images


Two years later in Vancouver, the Flame resembled a huge bonfire to signify the unity of ice and flame, and where 16-meter crystals made of steel and covered with a special compound burned.

Then at the most recent Games in London 2012 the Cauldron was made from 205 copper vessels in a shape resembling petals on long stems.

The parts of the Cauldron were lit by seven young British athletes - after which the petals were then raised, forming the huge cauldron with a single Flame.

After the completion of the Games, the Olympic team of each participating country were sent a petal in memory of the Games' unforgettable moments.

Given the fact that Russia has attempted to reach new physical and human boundaries with its Relay so far, it can be expected that the Ceremony will produce many more such firsts.

The rocket carrying the Olympic Torch takes off for the International Space Centre as the Torch Relay reaches new heights ©AFP/Getty Images 


As well as the visit to Outer Space the journey has already encompassed visits to the North Pole and to the bottom of the deepest freshwater lake in the world at Baikal.

One less desirable moment was found during last week however when Pyotr Makarchuk, a Russian Olympic bobsledder at Salt Lake City 2002, was carrying the Torch through a crowd in the Siberian city of Abakan when his jacket caught fire.

Although he was left unharmed, this was the opposite of a problem encountered earlier in the Relay when the Flame was unintentionally extinguished on several occasions.