Three Utahns will participate in the first worldwide Olympic Torch Relay on its way to Athens this month.

Brittany Chamberlain of Layton, Brett Banford of Salt Lake City and Osmond Crosby of Park City will represent Utah in the international relay.

The first two runners were nominated by relatives and selected for "their ability to inspire and overcome challenges within their own local communities," according to an Olympic Committee news release.

The third runner, Crosby, was chosen to carry the torch after submitting an essay to Samsung, one of the two sponsors of the Olympic Torch Relay.

Tara O'Donnell, a coordinating communication officer for Samsung, said torchbearers were selected for their ability to unite and inspire others, for believing in individuals by emphasizing similarities, not differences, and taking joy in life while lifting the spirits of others.

"This is the first and potentially the only global Olympic Torch Relay, because it's back in Greece," O'Donnell said. She said the relay usually only involves people from the host country.

The relay involves "everyday hero-type people from all these different places, and they are all so inspiring," O'Donnell said.

These torchbearers will run in the first leg of the American-hosted relay in Los Angeles on July 16. Each runner will carry the torch for a quarter of a mile.

Even though the runners will be given Olympic-endorsed clothing to wear while running, they will be required to pay for travel and lodging expenses to participate in the relay. Guler Banford, who nominated Brett, does not mind covering the cost.

"This is Olympic history - I don't mind," Guler Banford said. "Whatever it takes."

More than ten thousand torchbearers from all over the world will participate in the international delivery of the flame to its Athenian summer home. The journey will last 78 days and cover approximately 49,000 miles, with the torch traveling 35 days outside of Greece.

This is the first time the torch will visit Africa and Latin America, allowing 260 million people to see the international relay. The torch most recently visited Salt Lake City, Utah, for the XIXth Olympic Winter Games in 2002. The theme for the Athens Summer Olympics is "Pass the Flame, Unite the World."

The flame will pass through American cities that hosted the Summer Olympics - St. Louis (1904), Los Angeles (1932 and 1984) and Atlanta (1996), eventually leaving United States stewardship from New York on June 18.



Copyright Brigham Young University 7 Jun 2004