- Sputnik International, 1920, 24.01.2023
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Olympic Torch Goes Out Second Day in Row During Japan Relay, Reports Say

© REUTERS / Philip Fong/Pool Japanese torchbearer Azusa Iwashimizu (L), a member of the Japan women's national football team, holds an Olympic Torch after passing the flame to the next torchbearer during the torch relay grand start at the J-Village National Training Centre in Naraha town, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan March 25, 2021.
Japanese torchbearer Azusa Iwashimizu (L), a member of the Japan women's national football team, holds an Olympic Torch after passing the flame to the next torchbearer during the torch relay grand start at the J-Village National Training Centre in Naraha town, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan March 25, 2021.  - Sputnik International, 1920, 26.03.2021
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TOKYO (Sputnik) - The Olympic torch fire went out during a relay in Japan on Friday, repeating the scenario of the day before when the one-year delayed journey started in Fukushima Prefecture, NHK reported.

According to Japanese TV channel NHK, a torchbearer did not notice he was running with the fireless torch as the previous runner did not succeed in transferring the fire. Accompanying personnel discovered the problem just before approaching the next transfer point, stopped the relay and relighted the torch.

It is reported that there was a strong wind that hindered the personnel from relighting the torch. 

The fire also went out on Thursday — on the relay’s first day. The video of what happened provoked a broad reaction in social networks with some users seeing bad luck in such developments.

© REUTERS / Kim Kyung-HoonThe celebration cauldron is lit on the first day of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic torch relay in Naraha, Fukushima prefecture, Japan March 25, 2021.
Olympic Torch Goes Out Second Day in Row During Japan Relay, Reports Say - Sputnik International, 1920, 26.03.2021
The celebration cauldron is lit on the first day of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic torch relay in Naraha, Fukushima prefecture, Japan March 25, 2021.

Japan decided to start the relay, which will last 121 days, in Fukushima Prefecture to symbolise the country's restoration after the 2011 earthquake. The torch is now passing through Iitate, a village damaged by the Fukushima nuclear disaster.

According to the traditions, the Olympic fire was lighted in Greece in March 2020, then transported to Japan for the 2020 Summer Games. The relay was scheduled to start on March 26 of that year. However, two days before that, the International Olympic Committee announced postponing the games to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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