…about the Olympic Flame!
On a Zakynthos news website in October 2026, we read:
“The Greek Olympic delegation from Olympia – Hellas 776, the birthplace of the Olympic Games, will be in Lusaka, led by Olympic medallist Mr Nikolaos Skiathitis, carrying the Olympic Flame and the message of Peace, the Truce and Olympic Values”.
The question therefore remains, and is now becoming urgent:
Will the Mayor of Ancient Olympia or a representative of the municipal administration finally take a public position?
Is the Municipality of Ancient Olympia participating in any capacity in the welcoming events in Lusaka? And, if so, in what capacity, and what is its position on the use and presentation as the “Olympic Flame” of a symbol that is not the authentic Olympic Flame, as lit at Ancient Olympia during the established flame-lighting ceremony?
The LUSAKA DIPLOMATIC FUN FAIR – ROAD TO DAKAR 2026 events, under the central theme “A LIGHT SHONE FORTH”, take place from 2 to 6 October 2026 in Zambia and its capital, Lusaka. They are organised by the Holy Metropolis of Zambia and the Honorary Consulate General of Greece. They are dedicated to the African continent and “to the achievement of world peace, as prescribed by the tradition of the Olympic Truce”, ahead of the historic Dakar 2026 Games in Senegal.
At this point, an absolutely clear distinction is needed:
I do not oppose the celebrations. Quite the opposite.
Hosting the Youth Olympic Games in Africa for the first time is indeed a historic event that deserves to be celebrated. Africa has every right to rejoice in this moment.
For precisely this reason, however, I find it all the more regrettable that the people taking part in these celebrations are welcoming as the “Olympic Flame” something that is not the authentic Olympic Flame.
This is the heart of the problem.
The Olympic Flame is not a generic symbol that can be reproduced at will, “travel” independently of the official procedure and be presented each time as authentic. It is a specific symbol, defined by its history and ritual, inseparably linked to Ancient Olympia and the flame-lighting ceremony.
In my view, therefore, the people of Zambia have been misled on a historic scale. Through no fault of their own. They are enthusiastically welcoming something presented to them as the Olympic Flame, when it is not.
They have been given a “pseudo-Olympic Flame” and, in good faith, are welcoming it as the Olympic Flame.
This does credit to neither Africa nor Olympia.
That is why Ancient Olympia cannot remain silent.
See details here: https://www.tazakinthina.gr/ki-ola-gyro-sou-einai-fos…/