Sidney

The torch was designed with an arched shape to resemble the boomerang and the Sydney Opera House. The colors white, blue, and chrome were used to represent Australia's connection to the land, sea, and of course, fire. Once lit, I traveled for five and a half months, journeying through islands and oceans, even being submerged underwater at the Great Barrier Reef using a special system to keep the flame burning. During the section of the relay at Uluru, a sacred site for the Aboriginal people, torchbearers walked barefoot. The climax of the relay was the lighting of the cauldron by Aboriginal athlete Cathy Freeman, who stood in a circular pool of water, while 150 gas nozzles ignited me. Freeman went on to win the gold medal in the 400m race ten days later.