In Vladivostok, the presentation of the train that will carry the Olympic flame on the next leg of its journey by Sochi 2014 Relay Presenting Partner OAO "Russian Railways" took place. At the Station Square, where the city was celebrating the final Relay Celebration of the day, the President of OAO "Russian Railways", Mr. Vladimir Yakunin, personally handed over the lantern containing the Olympic flame to the Keepers of the Flame and presented the train to the Relay team that will continue on the Relay route to the regions of Russia in the third railway segment. It will run from November 16, 2013 to February 7, 2014. During this time, the Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay, which is presented by Coca-Cola, OSAO "Ingosstrakh" and OAO "RZD" will travel a record 17,400 kilometers by rail. Immediately after the presentation, the Olympic Torch Relay set off on its first railway leg to Khabarovsk.
The train, decorated in the style of the official Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay with elements of orange patchwork quilt consists of a locomotive and 11 cars of individual compartment design, including two dining cars and two cars from Relay Presenting Partners Coca-Cola and OSAO "Ingosstrakh", decorated in the individual brand colors of the partners’ companies. 7 train crews will serve the Sochi 2014 Relay Team alternately.
The train will depart from Vladivostok (Primorsky Region) and in 83 days will reach the host city of the XXII Olympic Winter Games - Sochi, having covered a distance of approximately 17,000 kilometers. It will cross the borders of 53 Russian regions. The Relay will be welcomed by 76 cities of the Far Eastern, Siberian, Volga, Southern and North Caucasian Federal Districts. Approximately 10,000 torchbearers, one after another, will pass each other the Olympic Flame. In addition to traditional running, torchbearers will also use alternative modes of transportation: motorcycle, underground tram, speedway, ice skates and skis, and dog sledding.
The Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay started in Moscow on October 7, 2013, and has already visited 58 cities. To date the Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch has been carried by 4,000 torchbearers, covering a total distance of 873.3 kilometers. The Olympic Flame has illuminated many iconic Russian landmarks, including Rurikovo Gorodishche, Yasnaya Polyana estate, Kizhi State Open-Air Museum, historic suburbs of St. Petersburg, and churches and temples of the Golden Ring of Russia. The Olympic flame also visited the Priobskoe oil field in Khanty-Mansi Autonomous District, the largest diamond mine in the world - the Mir kimberlite pipe in Yakutsk Region, and the top of Avacha volcano in Kamchatka Region. In addition, for the first time ever, the Olympic Torch spent several hours in on a spacewalk.
Dmitry Chernyshenko, the President of Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee, noted:
"Today, the longest segment of our record-breaking Olympic Torch Relay begins. On a special Russian Railways train, decorated with the Sochi 2014 patchwork quilt, the Flame will travel from the far east of Russia to the Olympic host city, passing through the territories of 53 Russian regions. The route is formed in such a way that the principal symbol of the Games can be seen not only the inhabitants of large cities, but also those is the most remote settlements. Bringing a piece of the Olympic celebration to every home is the main objective of the national Torch Relay."
The President of OAO "RZD" Vladimir Yakunin said:
We are proud of the fact that railway workers created the most modern railway transport services infrastructure in Sochi, and that the Olympic flame will travel through Russia on the train from Vladivostok to Sochi. And when hundreds of thousands of visitors come to the Olympics and Paralympics in Sochi, they will be able to easily get to the Olympic stadium in comfortable modern trains.
For more information on the Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay, visit Sochi2014.com, or call +7 495 984 2014.
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