Sochi, Russia, 2013-11-29 — /travelprnews.com/ — The Tuva Republic hosted the Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay today. The Olympic flame visited the geographical center of Asia, which is marked by a monument near Kyzyl. Fifty torchbearers covered a distance of 9.3 km as the Relay passed through the streets of the capital of the republic. Among the Olympic torchbearers were the winners of the competition organized by the Presenting Partners of the Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay, the Coca-Cola Company, OSAO “Ingosstrakh” and OAO “Russian Railways”.
The Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay team arrived by train in Novokuznetsk a few hours before the scheduled start of the Relay in Tuva. The Flame was met by a festive concert and leading regional officials on the railway station platform. Afterwards the Flame keepers brought the lantern by helicopter to the capital of the Tuva Republic, where residents were eagerly waiting to greet the unique guests. It was a deeply frozen minus 20, but despite the weather conditions, in total there were more 75,000 residents who came out to see the Relay.
An amazing city with an unusual national culture, Kyzyl is located in the center of the Asian continent, where the Great Yenisei River originates.
Hospitable Tuva welcomed the Olympic Torch Relay 30 km from its capital at the Aldyn-Bulak ethnocultural center, where much concentrated information about the long history of Tuva can be found. According to ancient tradition, on Mt. Khoomei Ovaa the first Olympic torchbearer placed a stone by the special holy place to the accompaniment of throat singing and the shouts of soldiers dressed in national costumes. The torchbearers experienced the full exotic nature of the nomadic life of the indigenous steppe peoples while carrying the Olympic Torch. Biathlete Sergey Babkin, Russian champion in freestyle wrestling Ayan-ool Ondar and multiple-time winner of the European and World championships in women’s wrestling Larisa Oorzhak took in the panoramic views of steppe, misty hills, felt yurts and sacred symbols. Their run was accompanied by the sounds of shaman drums and Khoomei throat singing, which is one of the main cultural traits for which the local inhabitants are famous. Deer, sheep and even camels greeted the arrival of Flame in Aldyn-Bulak
The Kyzyl city stage of the Relay started by the Yuzny Suburghan, which is one of the sacred amulets protecting the city from the south, north, west and east. The Olympic torchbearers from the republic visited the important sights of the Tuvan capital along their route: the Buddhist Suburghan, the Subedey Sports Complex, the “Center of Asia” Monument by the confluence of the Greater and Lesser Yenisei Rivers, which is located in the geographic center of the Asian continent, as well as the national museum, where “Scythian Gold”, the pride of all of Russia, is currently under exhibition. This exhibition represents the treasures of an ancient civilization that inhabited Siberia in ancient times. In just one hour the Flame visited the centers of two cultures, Russian and Tuvan. The Olympic Flame was greeted by Siberian Cossacks, cadets, Tuvan shamans and throat singers.
Among the torchbearers in Kyzyl were outstanding athletes, veterans of sport, as well as students, cultural and public figures who share the principles of the Olympic Movement. Pyotr Morozov, Honored Education Worker of the Republic and holder of the Order “For Valiant Labor,” Opan Sat, a two-time European champion in freestyle wrestling, Aydysmaa Mongush, founder of the Tuvan women’s national dance group, and Elena Dostay, an Olympic participant in archery competitions, all carried the torch on the 52nd day of the Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay. The Flame paid a visit to the National Museum of Tuva, which houses the actual treasury of Scythian kings who lived approximately 3,000 years ago at this site. The torchbearers stopped in front of a unique gold grivna depicting four spirals symbolizing the four corners of the earth. They also walked around the “Center of Asia” stele at the confluence of the Lesser and Great Yenisei Rivers, which marks the geographic center of Asia.
Mikhail Oyun, Honored Master of Sport in archery and participant at the Paralympic Games of 2012 in London, accepted the Olympic Flame at the end of the Relay in Kyzyl. He lit the Olympic Flame Cauldron together with Anatoly Damba-Khuurak, Deputy Prime Minister of the Tuva Republic. The festive evening continued with a performance of the Relay Anthem, the Olympic dance as well as a bright laser show.
After Tuva the Olympic Flame will return again to Keremovo Region, where the regional stage of the Relay will begin.
Notes to the Editor
The Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay
The Olympic Torch Relay gets under way in Sochi on 7 October 2013. According to the organizers’ calculations, 90% of the Russian population will be within an hour’s reach of the Torch Relay route at some time or other, and this means that approximately 130 million Russian citizens will be able to watch or participate directly in the Relay. In total, it will cover more than 65,000 kilometers, including by car, train, plane, Russian troika and even reindeer sleigh.
The Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay is going to be the longest in the entire history of the Olympic Winter Games. During the Olympic Torch Relay, 14,000 torchbearers will carry the Sochi 2014 Olympic torch through 2,900 settlements of 83 regions of the country. The Relay will end with the Olympic Winter Games Opening Ceremony in Sochi on February 7, 2014.
Presenting Partners of the Torch Relay are Coca-Cola, OSAO “Ingosstrakh” and OAO “Russian Railways”.
The Presenting Partners for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay
The Coca-Cola Company
The Coca-Cola Company is the largest producer in the world of non-alcoholic drinks products. It offers consumers more than 500 brands of carbonated and non-carbonated beverages. Along with the Coca-Cola brand, which is recognized as the most valuable in the world, the company’s portfolio includes 15 brands, the value of which amounts to over one billion dollars.
Thanks to the largest distribution system in the world, consumers in more than 200 countries around the world enjoy Coca-Cola beverages. Every day, over 1.8 billion portions of the company’s beverages are sold internationally.
Coca-Cola in Russia – Coca-Cola is one of the biggest investors in the Russian economy. Coca-Cola’s level of investment in Russia currently exceeds 3 billion dollars. Beverages with Coca-Cola registered trademarks are produced at 16 modern plants located on Russian territory from Saint Petersburg to Vladivostok (including plants of companies “Multon” and “Nidan”).
Coca-Cola Russia, which is an amalgamation of the company Coca-Cola and its partner-bottling company Hellenic, provides employment for over 15,000 highly qualified staff.
Over the course of over 100 years, participation of Coca-Cola company in sports events across the world has been and continues to be an integral part of the Company’s policy and an important element of the business.
Since 1928, Coca-Cola company has been an irreplaceable partner of the International Olympic Committee.
The Coca-Cola Company is preparing to be a Presenting Partner for the Olympic Torch Relay for the ninth time. The Coca-Cola Company first got involved in organizing the Olympic Torch Relay at the Olympic Games of 1992 in Barcelona.
For more detailed information about the company’s activities, please visit the following websites: www.thecocacolacompany.com and www.cocacolarussia.ru
OSAO “Ingosstrakh”
Ingosstrakh Insurance Company has operated in the domestic market since 1947. In 65 years, Ingosstrakh has transformed from a small branch to a large company, a universal insurer at federal level, and is the leader in various types of insurance. Today, branches are located across the country, and there are offices in 310 towns and cities across Russia. Today, the insurance company’s clients include over 12 million individuals and more than 400,000 commercial and state companies. Ingosstrakh’s high business reputation is confirmed by Standard & Poor’s international rating agency and Russian agency “Expert RA”.
The history of interaction between Ingosstrakh and the sports movement spans more than three decades. For Ingosstrakh, the Olympic Winter Games of 2014 in Sochi are going to be the second Olympic Games that the company has supported in our country. 32 years ago, Ingosstrakh was the supplier of insurance for the 1980 Olympics in Moscow, providing insurance cover both during the preparations for the Games and during the competitions themselves. Ingosstrakh actively participated in the insurance of Olympic venues which were constructed before the 1980 Olympics. At that time, the Olympic flame was also protected by Ingosstrakh: the company insured the athletes’ torch relay. The policy was active throughout the entire Olympic Torch Relay.
More than 30 years since the 1980 Olympics, Ingosstrakh has again received this great honor. Since October 2010, it has been a Partner: the official insurer of the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi. Thus, for the second time in its 65-year history, the insurer is supporting one of the most important events in the world of sport: the first Olympic Games in the history of modern Russia, the mission of which is to unite the country, and demonstrate the beauty and diversity of Russia to the world.
OAO “Russian Railways”
OAO “Russian Railways Company” is one of the biggest transport companies in the world, with a network consisting of over 85,000 km of railway lines. Every year the company provides transit for a billion passengers and over 1.2 million tons of freight.
In February 2010, OAO “Russian Railways Company” became a General Partner of the Olympic and Paralympic Games of 2014.
The company is implementing a range of important projects related to the construction new railways and stations in the region where the 2014 Games are going to be held, all of which are designed to ensure transit of construction material and equipment during the preparations for the Olympics, and to take competitors and spectators to the competition venues.
All the projects being carried out by OAO “Russian Railways Company” are taking place at unique construction sites, and serve as examples of complex task-solution: they are being created taking account of “barrier-free environment” requirements, so that they can be used by people with disabilities, with the very latest technology and “green building” standards applied.
The infrastructure elements on which OAO “Russian Railways Company” is working will form the main component of the legacy left by the Sochi 2014 Games. The new railway lines and stations will significantly improve passenger comfort on rail journeys, and the volume of passenger and freight transportation by rail will increase.
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