 rjonas, Fri, August 8th, 2008 There is only one thing that will get me to watch the opening ceremonies for the Olympics ... and no, it's not the bizarre interpretive dancing that symbolizes a nation's history in 20 excruciating minutes. It's the moment when the Olympic cauldron is lit. Not only does it symbolize the start of the Olympics, but it also gives the host city a chance to try to outdo the previous host city by coming up with a more elaborate sequence of events in order to get the flame lit. Here is a summary of all the Olympic flame lightings that I've seen on TV and a rating for each one based on a scale of one to five: Lake Placid (1980 Winter) -- The first use of an elevator to haul the flame to the top of the cauldron. Sadly, the elevator is now stuck at the top, so it can never be used again. ••• (for remaining an enduring symbol of Lake Placid's Olympic history) Moscow (1980 Summer) -- U.S. boycot. Didn't see the ceremony. Next. Sarajevo (1984 Winer) -- Couldn't stay up late enough to see the ceremony. Oh well. Next. Los Angeles (1984 Summer) -- Sending the flame through a chute to the cauldron was considered a technological breakthrough when it happened. Unfortunately, since the ceremony was at sunset in Los Angeles, you couldn't actually see the flame go up the chute to the cauldron. • (for bad planning) Calgary (1988 Winter) -- Again, the flame rose to the top of the stadium via elevator, but this time, it was accompanied by several swatches of fabric to mimic an Inuit teepee. •• (for copying Lake Placid) Seoul (1988 Summer) -- Another elevator was used, but this time it was to take the three torch bearers to the top of the cauldron so they could light it. This was also the flame lighting ceremony made famous for the fact that some doves were nesting in the cauldron when they lit it, immediatly incinerating the poor birds. •• (for senseless dove-acide) Albertville (1992 Winter) -- The first use of a wick on a guidewire to light the cauldron ... except that they mis-timed the wick's arrival and lit the cauldron before the wick got there. Seriously, check the slow-motion instant replay sometime. • (for a good idea gone bad ... and also all the weird Cirque-du-Soleil stuff during the whole opening ceremony) Barcelona (1992 Summer) -- The archer sending a lit arrow to the cauldron. This one raised the bar for all future flame-lighting ceremonies, even though it appeared the cauldron caught fire just before the arrow got there. ••••• (you have to applaud the effort) Lillehammer (1994 Winter) -- Liked the ski jumper bringing the flame into the stadium through the air. Too bad he didn't try to light the cauldron while in mid air. That would have put this one over the top. ••• (for the difficulty of carrying a torch while ski jumping) Atlanta (1996 Summer) -- Having Muhammed Ali light the flame was inspired. Using a wick on a guidewire to light the cauldron was uninspired. Having a lame cauldron really was uninspired. •• (for the lame cauldron) Nagano (1998 Winter) -- Don't remember it. Next. Sydney (2000 Summer) -- Torch bearer stands in shallow pool, dips flame into water, and then rising out of the pool comes the cauldron. Good thing they remembered to construct a hole in the middle of the cauldron so the torch bearer didn't become toast. ••••• (for really cool fire-in-water effect) Salt Lake City (2002 Winter) -- Having 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team at top of stadium to light the flame was inspired. Having flame shoot through the stem of the cauldron as water flowed downward was inspired. Having a cauldron that looked like a cauldron and not a bizarre menorah was the perfect touch to put Atlanta far behind us. •••• (gotta love seeing the 1980 "Miracle on Ice" boys getting the honor of lighting the cauldron) Athens (2004 Summer) -- It was interesting that the cauldron rotated downward so that it could be lit. Still, it couldn't make up for the fact that the flame at the top of the narrow cauldron looked a bit weak. ••• (points deducted for making Olympic flame look like a candle on a cake) Torino (2006 Winter) -- Great fireworks act to light the cauldron. The twisted exhaust pipes that made up the cauldron was even better. •••• (and when Detroit hosts an Olympics, it should have a cauldron like that) Beijing (2008 Summer) -- Saw the pictures this morning with the final torch bearer being hoisted up to the top of the stadium, then sending the flame through the air to the top of the cauldron. Definitely another bar raiser. ••••• (for reinventing the torch lighting ceremony) Vancouver (2010 Winter) -- I have no idea what they have planned, but the ceremony is in a domed stadium. That's going to potentially limit what organizers can do, although you never know. CATEGORY: Olympics
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