Namibia’s sprint legend, Frankie Fredericks, once again had the honour of running with the Olympic torch held aloft, a customary practice that signifies the camaraderie and good spirit ahead of Olympic Games. The Olympic torch has this week been passing through the state of Rio de Janeiro, as it edges closer and closer to the Maracana Stadium for the opening ceremony on August 5. The torch went through the islands of Ilha Bela and Angra, where it was carried over land and sea and met by fans. The torch will cross a total of 20 000 km of Brazilian territory, relayed by 12 000 torchbearers – including Federicks – before reaching the Maracana Stadium for the start of the Games in August. Each torchbearer ran about 200 metres in a relay that involved about 329 cities.