Throughout the torch relay (except in Marseille on May 9), the Olympic and Paralympic sports federations will field a team of 24 people to highlight their sport; this will be the case for climbing in Sisteron on Saturday May 11, volleyball in Arles this Sunday 12 or even cycling at Mont Ventoux on June 19.
The sponsors of the torch relay, Coca-Coca and the Banque Populaire Caisse d’Epargne group, will also have their own collective relays each day.
For Europe Day
Finally, the State will compose five relays over the 69 days that this long process will last until the lighting of the flame on July 26. The first of these relays will take place Thursday May 9 in Marseille, on the theme of Europe, for Europe Day. Others will follow: May 31 in the Channel around 80e anniversary of the D-Day landings, June 26 to celebrate the Franco-German couple on the border, National Day on July 14 and finally July 26 to highlight the builders of the Olympic equipment.
Several Olympic champions, including the queen of the hammer, the Polish Anita Wlodarczyk
The Marseille collective relay, this Thursday morning, in the streets of Marseille, will be made up of one athlete or para athlete per country, for each member of the EU, i.e. 27. Jean Galfione, Olympic pole vault champion in Atlanta -1996, will represent France. There will also be the Belgian Kim Gevaert (Olympic champion with the 4×100 m in athletics in Beijing-2008), the Polish Anita Wlodarczyk (triple reigning Olympic champion and world record holder in the hammer) or the double Olympic champion of rowing (1988 and 1996), the Italian Davide Tizzano.
There will be a 28th carrier: the Ukrainian gymnast Maria Vysotchanska will even be the captain, even though her country is not a member of the EU. “A strong symbol, that of our solidarity with Ukraine”explained Amélie Oudéa-Castera, the Minister of Sports and the Olympic and Paralympic Games, in West France.
The twenty-eight bearers of the European collective relay
Ukraine: Maria Vysotchanska (rhythmic gymnastics, captain of this relay), France: Jean Galfione (athletics), Germany: Finn Sonnekalb (speed skating); Austria: Liu Jia (table tennis); Belgium: Kim Gevaert (athletics); Bulgaria: Emona Ivanova (badminton); Cyprus: Karolina Pelendritou (swimming); Croatia: Danira Bilić (basketball); Denmark: Sébastian Terteryan (boxing); Spain: Fermín Cacho (athletics); Estonia: Ksenija Balta (athletics); Finland: Amanda Kotaja (athletics); Greece: Theodora Gkountoura (fencing); Hungary: Zsolt Gyulay (canoe-kayak); Ireland: Eve McMahon (sailing); Italy: Davide Tizzano (rowing); Lithuania: Saulius Ritter (rowing); Latvia: Gunta Baško (basketball); Luxembourg: Raphaël Stacchiotti (swimming); Malta: Nathan Farrugia (marathon); Netherlands: Ireen Wüst (speed skating); Poland: Anita Wlodarczyk (athletics); Portugal: Diana Duarte Gomes Pedras (swimming); Czech Republic: Lenka Henebergová (athletics); Romania: Ana Maria Florentina Brânz (fencing); Slovakia: Loriána Popovičová (triathlon); Slovenia: Domen Makuc (handball); Sweden: Hanna Koba (sailing).
