By Jayla Whitfield-Anderson
ATLANTA, Sept 29 (Reuters) – The torch relay for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics will travel through all 50 US states, beginning its domestic journey in Atlanta in a nod to the city’s hosting of the 1996 Summer Games, LA28 said on Tuesday.
LA28 Chairperson and President Casey Wasserman joined Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens and former Olympic officials at City Hall to announce the plan, which organisers said was intended to connect communities across the country ahead of the Los Angeles Games.
“Every Olympic Games begins with a single flame, and carrying that flame to Los Angeles is an honor and privilege that we’ll share with every corner of the country,” Wasserman said in a statement.
Atlanta will be the first stop for the Olympic flame, returning to the city 32 years after it hosted the 1996 Olympics.
“Starting this journey in Atlanta is a tribute to a city with deep Olympic roots,” Wasserman added.
The full route, including the timing of the relay and the cities selected to host it, will be announced in 2027. LA28 did not disclose how long the relay would run or how torchbearers would be chosen.
The Paralympic torch relay will also be held ahead of the 2028 Games, though its starting location will be announced later, organisers said.
Four companies – Coca-Cola, JPMorgan Chase, Allstate and Xfinity – will serve as presenting partners of both relays..
The announcement brought together several figures connected to the Atlanta Games, including Billy Payne, who led the organising committee for the 1996 Olympics, and Janet Evans, LA28’s chief athlete officer and a four-time Olympic swimming gold medallist who was among the final torchbearers in Atlanta in 1996.
Lonnie Ali, interim president and chief executive of the Muhammad Ali Center and the wife of late boxing great Muhammad Ali, also took part in the event. Evans carried the torch during the Opening Ceremony at the 1996 Games and handed it to the former world heavyweight boxing champion who lit the Olympic flame.
Los Angeles will host the Olympics for a third time in 2028, after 1932 and 1984, and will stage its first Paralympic Games.
(Writing by Rory Carroll, editing by Ed Osmond)
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