Flame of Peace Relay

The  Flame of Peace for the 2nd European Games was lit at the Ara Pacis Museum in Rome on 3 May. The relay lasted for 50 days. The length of the route was 7,700km.

The flame was taken to the highest point in Europe – Mount Mont Blanc, and also traveled through Austria, Slovenia, Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Poland. On 12 May, the torch arrived in Belarus. The symbol of the European Games traveled around the country for almost seven weeks, visiting all regions: cities and villages, famous Belarusian castles, memorial complexes, national parks, sports, historical and cultural objects, and large enterprises.

The relay featured 450 torchbearers: eminent sportsmen, people of culture, science, and art, journalists, politicians, and public figures. They were accompanied by 100 volunteers and 10 flame keepers.

The Flame of Peace travel around Belarus in our photo gallery:

• Brest Oblast – the legendary hero fortress, Belovezhskaya Pushcha, Kamenets Tower…
• Grodno Oblast – the streets of the “royal city”, the majestic Mir Castle and a ceremony to launch th e2nd European Games medals…
• Vitebsk Oblast – Marc Chagall house-museum, Braslav lakes and regatta, the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve…
• Mogilev Oblast – Buinichi Field memorial, zoological gardens, a concert at the City Hall, and Trofim's Spring-Well in Alexandria…
• Gomel Oblast – a route across the city over the Sozh, Spartak confectionery and a chocolate copy of the torch, Gomselmash and a super harvester…
• Minsk Oblast – a speleotherapy chamber in the former mines at a depth of 420m underground and salt terricones near Soligorsk, the Radziwills old residence in Nesvizh, the industrial park Great Stone.
• Minsk city – the avenues of the capital, Hi-Tech Park and a robot torchbearer, Bolshoi Theater and a trip to the subway, a colorful welcome ceremony in State Flag Square…

The torch of the 2nd European Games was designed by Yulia Braychuk together with specialists of the Novogrudok Gas Equipment Plant. The main decorative element was a carved blooming fern flower, the logo of the Minsk European Games. The stainless steel design featured 40 parts, weighing just over 1.7kg and 81cm tall.

The torch was designed for the most convenient use during running. The torch had special holders and could be attached to a bike and a wheelchair. According to the European Olympic Committees requirements, the flame should not have gone out at speeds of up to 76km/h: the Belarusian torch withstood the test at 120km/h.

The final touch of the relay was the lighting ceremony at the stadium during the grand opening ceremony of the 2nd European Games on 21 June.

The torch was brought to the stadium by Belarusian Olympic champions – Darya Domracheva, Aliaksei Grishin, Max Mirnyi, Yuliya Nestsiarenka, Raman Petrushenka, Nadezhda Skardino, and Dzmitry Dauhalionak, who lit the flame of the 2nd European Games Minsk 2019.

The official name of the stadium bowl was The Fern Flower Cauldron. It was an updated version of the cup used during the 1980 Olympics in Minsk. The new cauldron was embellished with a pattern alluding to the fern flower.

It was symbolical that the outstanding Belarusian wrestler Alexander Medved took part in the flame relay race in 1980 and in the European Games opening ceremony.

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