EXPRESSION OF INTEREST
PRE-FINAL LEG ACTIVITIES
During the Team Zoom Call last month, our Team Captain spoke about two opportunities available to Final Leg Team members.
The first opportunity is to attend the Flame Lighting Ceremony in Athens.
This ceremony has taken place prior to the Final Leg for over 20 years. It is arranged and managed by Special Olympics Hellas (Greece) and is held in one of two locations - the Acropolis or Zappeoin Hall, both in Athens.
In 2023, the Flame Lighting Ceremony was held at Zappeoin Hall. For the first time since 2003, Final Leg Team members were able to travel to Athens and participate in the event (which included a Torch Run out of the Hall)
The Flame Lighting Ceremony is scheduled for Tuesday, 25 February 2025, commencing around 11.00am.
The second opportunity is to attend a mass where Pope Francis will bless the Flame of Hope. To our knowledge, this will be a first for the Torch Run.
The timings and finer details of this event are not yet settled, but it is likely that the mass will be held in St Peter's Basilica within Vatican City in Rome on the morning of Wednesday, 26 February 2025.
If you've been paying attention, you may have realised that the timings for these two activities are very tight.
All Final Leg Team members need to be in Turin by the afternoon of Thursday, 27 February 2025 with the first Torch Run scheduled just 2 days later.
If you are thinking about participating in either or both of these activities, you should do so in the full knowledge that you'll have to manage your travel arrangements well.
A quick check of the Skyscanner website shows just two direct flights from Athens to Rome on the afternoon / evening of February 25 - Aegean at 4.25pm and ITA at 7.25pm.
If you travel to Athens, you will have to leave for the airport immediately following the Welcome Ceremony at the Italian Embassy if you want to be in Rome for the Papal Blessing.
You would have a bit more time following the blessing - you could stay in Rome on the nights of February 25 / 26 and catch a direct train to Turin on the morning of February 27. The train journey takes about 5 hours. Flights are also available.
We'd like everyone on the team to complete the form - it will provide us with a solid basis to take these ideas to the next stage.
If you have any questions about this proposal, don't hesitate to reach out to Mark McCorkle, Greg Dawson or myself.
Scott
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