Olympic Torch Extinguished in Whitewater Rafting Gaffe
From the pages of dumb ideas that failed rather quickly comes organizers trying to carry the Olympic torch on a whirlwind tour through roaring rapids.
The Daily Mail reports on the brief death of the Olympic flame.
It seems the torch has been through some tumultuous times recently. It was drenched in rain as it went through the streets, carried by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver.
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The Olympic torch was then delayed due to a motorcycle accident, but the real problem came because of user error.
British junior team canoeist Zachary Franklin had one job, carrying the torch as the team descended down the rapids at Lee Valley White Water Centre near Waltham Cross.
As you can see in this video, he fails.
The best part of the video is the men telling Franklin to keep the torch higher, as if anything is that easy as you go down whitewater rapids carrying a huge torch in one hand.
I would have replied to one of them with, "How about we just keep this damn thing away from water?"
Please don't stress, because they will not be calling off the London Games, and poor Franklin will not be losing his head anytime soon.
The flame has gone out before, and it's the reason organizers carry a back-up flame to reignite the most famous torch in the world.
A spokesman offered this for those worried about Olympic flames going up in a heap of smoke, via The Daily Mail:
"It is not uncommon for a flame to go out and this can happen for a number of reasons. In this instance it was due to water being splashed into the boat from the slalom course. It was relit from the mother flame, which is kept in a specially designed miners’ lantern and successfully taken down the course on the second attempt.
"
No, in this case, it was extinguished as a result of the inevitable situation caused by taking something lit down a rocking path filled with water.
I look forward to organizers running the torch through a car wash shortly.
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