The Olympic flame went on a cross-border peace mission today to Dublin to celebrate Northern Ireland reconciliation and strong British-Irish ties. A convoy sped the symbol of the London Games to the Irish capital after a dawn ceremony at the border between the Republic of Ireland and the British territory of Northern Ireland. There, two Olympic medal-winning boxers and former teammates one a British Protestant from Belfast, the other an Irish Catholic from Dublin embraced and held aloft their two torches.
Belfast bantamweight Wayne McCullough, who won silver in Barcelona in 1992, lit the torch held by Michael Carruth, who won gold as a welterweight 20 years ago. Then McCullough kissed his old friend on his bald head to laughs and cheers from a few hundred locals from both sides of the border. Ireland’s head of state, President Michael D. Higgins, officially welcomed the flame’s arrival in Dublin at the Irish Olympic headquarters in the suburban fishing port of Howth. Several thousand spectators packed the harbor as Higgins declared that the Olympic flame “shone for the spirit of sport and unity.”
Related posts:
- Egypt withdraws from hockey’s Olympic Qualifier in New Delhi
- Indian hockey team to open Olympic campaign against Holland
- Hooda congratulates Vijender for booking Olympic berth
- ‘Cameron is sure to win an Olympic gold medal for chillaxing’
- Ministry releases over Rs 3 crore for Olympic preparation
- India lose to Great Britain in hockey’s Olympic test event
- 1 million Olympic tickets to go on sale
- India bags two Olympic quotas through Imran, Manavjit
- Centre announces special package for Punjab border districts
- Arms, ammunition recovered from near Pak border
