The Olympic flame commemorates the theft of fire from Greek god Zeus by Prometheus, and burnt throughout the ancient Games.

It was reintroduced in the modern era at the 1928 Olympics in Amsterdam.

The Games of the IX Olympiad also saw Greece lead the parade of nations at the opening ceremony for the first time, while the host country marched in last, a tradition which continues today.

And in 1936, the organisers of the Berlin Games came up with the idea of transporting the flame, which is lit at Olympia, to the host city via a relay.