ELI5: What Is the Olympic Flame?

Imagine you're having a birthday party. What's super special? The birthday candle, right?

The Olympic Flame is kind of like a super, super important birthday candle for the whole world's sporting party – the Olympic Games!

• It's a flame that burns continuously from when it's first lit in Greece, all the way until the end of the Olympics.
• It's lit using the sun's rays in Olympia, Greece, where the ancient Olympic Games were held. Think of using a magnifying glass to start a fire!

• It represents the Olympic spirit: peace, unity, friendship, and fair play. Like sharing your cake and games at your party!
• It's a symbol that connects the ancient games to the modern ones. It's like remembering a really cool story from a long, long time ago.
• The flame travels a long way, carried by people called torchbearers. They run or ride with it, passing it to each other like a relay race, from Greece to the city hosting the Olympics. This is the Olympic Torch Relay. Imagine passing a really special toy around to all your friends!
• When the flame arrives at the Olympic stadium, it's used to light the Olympic cauldron, a big bowl that holds the flame. It burns throughout the Games.
• When the Games are over, the flame is put out, but the Olympic spirit stays with us!