With the announcement of Tokyo winning the bid for the 2020 Olympic host city this afternoon and the Sochi 2014 Torch relay only 29 days away, I’m getting very excited about my upcoming trip to experience my third Olympic Games!

In 2010, the Olympic Torch Relay came right by my building when I lived smack downtown at Howe and Nelson. This was the true beginning of that amazing energy we felt in our city for the duration of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games. I cannot WAIT to feel that energy again when I arrive in Sochi! To view my photos from the final stretch of the Vancouver 2010 Relay, please visit the set on Flickr.

Sadly, I will miss the 2014  relay, as I won’t be in Russia just yet. But I do plan to find and hold one while I’m there to add to my Olympic torch photo collection. The question is, will I be wearing my Canadian or Dutch colors for this one?

The torch is one of the key symbols of the Games and often captures the imagination of the world. With its bright, eye-catching design, the Sochi 2014 torch, shown here, is intended to reflect Russian hospitality, and the joyful and inspirational atmosphere which is an integral part of the Olympic Torch Relays.

The Flame for the XXII Olympic Winter Games of 2014 will arrive in Moscow on October 6th, 2013, after being lit on the ancient ground of Olympia. From there, it will begin its 123 day journey across the territory of Russia. It will be seen by the residents of 83 regions of the Russian Federation and the coverage of the relay will be 90% of the country’s population.

The Olympic torch will be carried by a record number of torchbearers. 14 thousand people will have the opportunity to run with the lit torch across the cities of Russia, and more than 30 thousand volunteers will be active at the relay. It will travel more than 65,000 km in the 123 day journey.

For more information about the Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay, please visit www.torchrelay.sochi2014.com.

(image source: http://torchrelay.sochi2014.com/en/Relay/OurRelay)

You could feel that Olympic energy returning to Robson Square last night with the torch relay coming through, carried by Roberto Luongo. Hoping to see the fans just as excited during the Paralympic Games over the next ten days in support of the amazing athletes and the additional challenges they face in order to compete in this amazing event.

The crowd gets hyped for Roberto Luongo’s arrival.

Luongo finally arrives.

Luongo’s family, excited to see him.

The lighting of the cauldron.

Passing the torch to the next 24 hour relay torch bearer.

Gabriela Luongo joined her father on stage.

Gold medal winner, Roberto Luongo with his family.

Post torch even interview. Luong speaks about his gold medal (he showed it to Ryan Kessler first!), the paralympics, the sledge hockey team and how the Olympics affected his NHL game.

After all the Luongo excitement was over, I was excited to meet one of the day’s torch bearers. He told me all about riding on the bus with Roberto Luongo that day and how excited he was about having the honour of carrying the torch.

For more photos from the Robson Square event, please visit my flickr page.