(ATR) Thomas Bach says the Rio torch relay will stop at a refugee camp in Athens following the flame lighting at Olympia in April.
The IOC chief announced the move on a visit Thursday to the open reception center for refugees in the Athens district of Eleonas.
The flame lighting is scheduled for April 21 after which it will go on a six-day trek around Greece before the torch is flown to Rio de Janeiro. The official start of the Brazilian relay is slated for May 3.
Sporting a Youth Olympics DNA tracksuit top, Bach wandered around the refugee facility, stopping to speak to refugees who have sought a safe haven in Greece after fleeing conflict-hit countries including Syria.
"I think what the Greeks are doing for migrant people is really extraordinary," he said during the visit, according to the Associated Press.
Bach also vowed to build sporting facilities on the island of Lesbos, which has struggled to cope with the influx of refugees in recent months. Over 850,000 people entered Greece in 2015, many en route to other European countries.
Speaking about the small group of refugee athletes the IOC is assisting in getting to the Rio Games, Bach said they would march behind the Olympic flag prior to the Brazilian team at the opening ceremony on Aug. 5.
Bach was accompanied by IOC Honorary President Jacques Rogge, a United Nations special envoy for youth refugees and sport, and Greek officials including NOC president Spyros Capralos.
On Wednesday, Bach held talks with Hellenic Olympic Committee headquarters.
In comments to reporters, he expressed confidence that Brazil would deliver a great Games despite economic and political problems plaguing the build-up to the August opening. Brazil president Dilma Rousseff may face impeachment and the country is reeling from the Petrobas corruption scandal.
He described the six months before the Olympics for any host as "the most difficult time", without mentioning the last-ditch cost-cutting measures that Rio 2016 is undertaking to trim its budget. Brazil is also managing an outbreak of the Zika virus.
"Of course it is the same for other countries, and it is the same for the Brazilians," Bach was quoted as saying by Reuters.
Despite what he labeled a country "in a situation of crisis", Bach said the world "can look forward to the opening of the stadium and to be overwhelmed by the passion of our Brazilian hosts".
Reported by Mark Bisson
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