The world's first female astronaut Valentina Tereshkova has been named on a preliminary list of 6,000 individuals chosen to take part in the record breaking torch relay in the build-up to the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics, a news report said Monday.
The 2014 Olympic torch relay will be the longest in the history of the Winter Olympic Games. Starting in October, the torch will travel 65,000 kilometers over the course of 123 days, passing through 2,900 towns, the games' official website said.
Soviet cosmonaut Tereshkova was launched aboard the Vostok 6 fifty years ago to become the first woman in space. She orbited the earth 48 times, and in the course of that historic 70.8-hour flight.
Her name was added to the list that also includes teachers, students, athletes, doctors, and public figures. The final list will be released by the end of September 2013. There will be 14,000 torchbearers in total, the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee said in a statement carried by Interfax.
A 93-year-old from the Volgograd region is the oldest person to have been chosen, while the youngest is a 14-year-old from Kalmykia.
The four-time Olympic champion for gymnastics Alexei Nemov, three-time winner for synchronized swimming Maria Kiseleva, and Paralympic bronze medalist from the 2012 summer games Alexei Chuvashev, have also been chosen.
Also, 136 representatives from foreign countries, including U.S, Brazil, Japan, Spain and Britain — among others — will take part.
"Everyone will get the chance to become a torchbearer. We are trying to make the representative of candidates as wide as possible. Almost all of the torchbearers for Sochi 2014 are known, and soon we will tell you about them," the Organizing Committee's president Dmitry Chernyshenko said.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.
