The 41st stage of the Olympic torch relay will dedicate not one but two departments this Wednesday, June 26. After leaving Burgundy-Franche-Comté the day before (before returning there on July 12 via Dijon), the festivities continue in the European Community of Alsace, today attached to the Grand Est region.
A rich day with seven fragments and 175 flame bearers. It will all start in Haut-Rhin, at Mulhouse at 8:30 a.m. from its town hall for an arrival at the Stade de l’Ill at 9:27 a.m. From 9:45 a.m., the rest will be located at Huningue with the passage of the three countries footbridge to reach Place Abbatucci at 10:05 a.m. Colmar, “Little French Venice” with its half-timbered houses painted in pastel colors, its cobbled streets and its flowery canals, will be the last town in Haut-Rhin to receive the passage of the flame at 11 a.m. A loop in the city is planned around the Hôtel d’Alsace until 12:01 p.m.
We will then pass into the Bas-Rhin with Marckolsheim at 12:38 p.m. for twenty minutes. Saverne will take over at 3:26 p.m. with its Château des Rohan and its historic city center. The arrival will take place at the Unicorn stadium at 4:11 p.m. HAS Lembachthe flame will travel back in time to Fleckenstein Castle, built in the 12th century from 5:15 p.m. to 5:35 p.m.
At precisely 5:44 p.m., Strasbourg will launch the European Parliament festivities with a visit to the European Court of Human Rights and the Council of Europe. The flame will cross the covered bridges which date from the 13th century and enter the heart of the Grande Île de Strasbourg, the most central and characteristic island of the city. The Alsatian Museum, a museum of popular arts and traditions, and the Gothic Notre-Dame cathedral will be in the spotlight.
Then comes the time for a collective relay dedicated to judo, led by Ninon Lassalle, who embodies youth at Place Gutenberg. The route ends on Place Kléber, in the heart of the city for the lighting of the flame at 7:20 p.m.
