--- description: The Olympic torch relay dates back to Nazi Germany. Here's what to know. title: The Dark History of the Olympic Torch Relay image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4e11b561031c6d40/698a58a5e6e84a13912b3244/dark-history-olympic-torch-berlin-01.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [History](/section/history/) ## History Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [olympics](/tag/olympics/) ## olympics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # The Dark History of the Olympic Torch Relay  by [Olivia B. Waxman](/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer Jul 21, 2024 11:00 AM CUT  German athlete Fritz Schilgen runs past German army soldiers with the Olympic torch on his way to lighting the Olympic flame at the opening ceremony of the 1936 Summer Olympics at the Olympiastadion in Berlin, Germany, on Aug. 1 1936. German athlete Fritz Schilgen runs past German army soldiers with the Olympic torch on his way to lighting the Olympic flame at the opening ceremony of the 1936 Summer Olympics at the Olympiastadion in Berlin, Germany, on Aug. 1 1936.FPG/Archive Photos/Hulton Archive/Getty Images  by [Olivia B. Waxman](/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer Jul 21, 2024 11:00 AM CUT The lighting of the Olympic cauldron on the [River Seine](https://time.com/6261729/seine-clean-up-paris-olympics-2024/ "undefined") on July 26 will mark the beginning of the [2024 Paris Summer Olympics](https://time.com/tag/olympics-2024/ "undefined") and the end of a two-and-a-half-month torch relay designed to ignite enthusiasm across France for the games. [First lit](https://www.reuters.com/sports/paris-2024-olympics-torch-lit-ancient-olympia-2024-04-16/ "undefined") in Ancient Olympia, Greece, on April 16 as an homage to the [ancient](https://time.com/4431034/rio-olympics-ancient-history/ "undefined") version of the Games, the torch arrived in Marseilles, France, three weeks later via a three-masted ship. By the time its journey ends about 10,000 torchbearers—including [Ukrainian](https://time.com/6695261/ukraine-forever-war-danger/ "undefined") gymnast Mariia Vysochanska, former NBA star [Tony Parker](https://time.com/5125421/gregg-popovich-san-antonio-spurs-success/ "undefined"), and Michelin-starred chef Alexandre Mazzia— will have carried it to 64 French territories, visiting historic sites like the [D-Day ](https://time.com/5595104/d-day-veterans-remember/ "undefined")landing beaches in [Normandy](https://time.com/5600203/d-day-movies/ "undefined") and the Palace of Versailles. However, this bright point in the countdown to the Olympics has a dark origin story. It dates back to the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, at a time when dictator [Adolf Hitler ](https://time.com/5903486/hilter-history-biden-trump-debate/ "undefined")was trying to boost the image of the [Nazi Party](https://time.com/5854001/nazi-memories/ "undefined"). At the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics and the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics, flames were lit to mark the beginning of the Games and extinguished to signal the end of the Games. But the first torch relay was the brainchild of Carl Diem, the organizer of the 1936 Berlin Olympics. , That year the torch was transported to seven countries over 12 days. When it arrived at the Olympiastadion in Berlin, [Hitler](https://time.com/archive/6598257/adolf-hitler-man-of-the-year-1938/ "undefined") himself declared that the Games had officially begun, according to the book _Total Olympics_ by Jeremy Fuchs.  Adolf Hitler during the Berlin Summer Olympics in 1936. Erich Andres—United Archives/Getty Images Hitler was a devout reader of Greek mythology and drawn to the torch as a symbol of ancient Greece. [According to](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/the-nazi-olympics-berlin-1936-inauguration-of-the-olympic-torch-relay "undefined") the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, the Nazis compared themselves to the ancient Greeks, and a Nazi myth argued that “a superior German civilization was the rightful heir of an ‘Aryan’ culture of classical antiquity.” Hitler wanted to use the torch as a propaganda symbol, akin to the torchlit parades and rallies that the party regularly hosted [to draw youth](https://time.com/5700753/hilter-youth-jojo-rabbit/ "undefined") and adults to the Nazi movement. At this point, the torch relay has been completely disassociated from its Nazi past, but it has occasionally sparked controversy over the years. For example, during the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the torch relay became a target of anti-China and pro-Tibet protests. Taiwan also didn’t want to be included in the relay because it wanted to assert its self-governance, the Associated Press [reports](https://apnews.com/article/220639ad71237c04243bc95bb887812e "undefined"). For the most part, however, the torch relay today is seen as a way to celebrate each host country’s claims to fame as the flame is transported to different landmarks. As Tony Perrottet [writes](https://apnews.com/article/220639ad71237c04243bc95bb887812e "undefined") in his 2004 book _The Naked Olympics_, the torch is seen as a “symbol of international brotherhood.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6987917/olympic-torch-history-nazi-hitler/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6987917/olympic-torch-history-nazi-hitler/"},"headline":"The Dark History of the Olympic Torch Relay","datePublished":"2024-07-21T11:00:00.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:52:18.606Z","description":"The tradition dates back to the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin","url":"https://time.com/6987917/olympic-torch-history-nazi-hitler/","keywords":["olympics"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4e11b561031c6d40/698a58a5e6e84a13912b3244/dark-history-olympic-torch-berlin-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Olivia B. 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