231 torchbearers ran with the torch through the streets of the suburbs of St Petersburg such as Kronstadt, Lomonosov, Petergof, Pavlovsk and Pushkin, covering a total distance of 36.7 km. 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".
On the eve of the car relay through the St Petersburg suburbs, the Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay crossed the Blagoveshchensky Bridge in St Petersburg. At 5 am, the actor, Mikhail Boyarsky handed the Olympic flame to his son, General Director of the TV channel "St Petersburg", Sergey Boyarsky at the center of the bridge the time of its drawing. The slope of the opening of the Blagoveshchensky Bridge was at 5о.
In the early morning mist, the Sochi 2014 Olympic flame was welcomed at the embankment of the Gulf of Finland in Krondstadt. Located on the Kotlin island, the fortress town was built to protect St Petersburg at the Gulf of Finland. The Olympic torch was carried across the quay of the Petrovsky Park by the honored St Petersburger, Mikhail Bobrov. At one of the stages, the torch was transferred to the TV journalist, Alexander Lyubimov. He admitted that he chose Krondstadt especially for his relay stage because of the town's incredible history at the beginning of the 20th century. In 1921, the town witnessed the uprising against the Bolsheviks, which received the name "Krondstadt Rebellion".
Later, the Olympic Torch Relay passed through Lomonosov, where its route passed by the Cathedral of the Archangel Michael, the buildings of the Volhynian Guard Regiment and the Manege Descent, the square of the Oranienbaum palace and The Menshikov Palace.
A favorite with tourists because of its luxurious fountain complex and palaces, Petergof, was the next town to accept the Olympic torch. The figure skater, a native of St Petersburg, Aleksei Yagudin and the Olympic figure skating champion, Tatiana Totmianina, ran down a road in the Nizhny Park.
After having completed their run across Petergof, the figure skaters Aleksey Yagudin and Tatiana Totmianina transported the Olympic Torch to Pavlovsk on a retro train. The Olympic delegation was met by couples in 19th century costumes, who served as a reminder of the fact that it was the Pavlovsk train station that received the first ever Russian train between St Petersburg and Tsarskoye Selo.
Having traveled through the streets of Pavlovsk, the Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay set off for Pushkin. The sports commentator, Kirill Nabutov, the Deputy Sergey Mironov, the Chairman of the Management Board of OAO "Gazprom", Aleksei Miller, and the KHL President, Alexander Medvedev, carried the Olympic Torch through the streets of the historic city.
During a friendly match at the St Petersburg Ice Dome, Alexander's duties were presented to fans as a unique gift. Before the start of the match, the captains of the SKA and CSKA teams, Ilya Kovalchuk and Aleksei Morosov, came out in the recognizable torchbearer uniforms, carrying the Olympic torches. After his torch had been lit by the Keepers of the Flame, Ilya, accompanied by loud ovations, skated passed his team at the center of the arena and then passed the Olympic Torch to Aleksey, who skated with the Torch on his side of the rink. The Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay on ice brought the athletes and spectators incredible energy and warmed the hearts of hundreds of thousands of Russians who have been witnessing the Olympic celebrations.
The car stage of the Russian Olympic Torch Relay came to an end in St Petersburg. Before this, a single Olympic motorcade had completed a car relay in the Central and North West Federal Districts, having visited 37 towns over the course of 21 days.
Tomorrow, the Olympic Torch Relay will continue in Kaliningrad,the capital of the westernmost region of the country The Relay will travel along the Curonian Spit and on the deck of the Kruzenshtern ship, which will be positioned in the harbor especially for the unique event.
For more information contact:the Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay Communications Service
sochi2014.com | OGON@sochi2014.com | +7 495 984 2014
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