OLYMPIC TORCH HEADED FOR SOUTHEAST MISSOURI IN MAY

Although they aren't competing in the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, the torchbearers have some pre-game athletic training to do. More than 10,000 people are gearing up for their one-kilometer run in the Olympic torch relay across the United States.

In Southeast Missouri, 25 "community heroes" were chosen to carry the torch through Cape Girardeau and Jackson when it arrives Memorial Day.

Justin Johnson, a freshman at Kelly High School in Benton, is counting down to the Olympic torch relay on May 27. He was chosen by Coca-Cola to help carry the torch to Atlanta, but isn't certain of his exact route.

"I run track at school so this will be nothing," Johnson said of the one-kilometer distance. It will be Johnson's first time to see the Olympic torch, let alone carry it.

Runners were selected to carry the flame by two different contests. A regional contest was sponsored by the United Way organization and a national contest by Coca-Cola.

The 25 "community heroes" torchbearers were announced in February by the Area Wide United Way. They will carry the Olympic torch as it passes through Cape Girardeau. Another handful of runners were selected by Coca-Cola in its "Who Would You Choose?" contest. The final list of names is not complete, however.

The torch arrives in Cape Girardeau one month leaving on its journey from Los Angeles on April 27. It will travel 15,000 miles across the United States during its 84-day journey. Approximately 500 of the miles are in Missouri, but only about 12 of them in Cape Girardeau County.

The torch is scheduled to arrive downtown around 1 p.m. Memorial Day via train from Memphis. It will then travel up the Courthouse steps, along Broadway and Kingshighway to Jackson.

In Jackson, runners will carry the torch along Hope Street out to U.S. Highway 61 and then to the interstate. Cyclists will carry the torch north.

The Olympic flame will travel through 42 states, which brings it within a two-hour distance of 90 percent of the U.S. population. It arrives in Atlanta July 19 for the opening ceremonies of the Centennial Olympic Games.

In 1984 during the Los Angeles games, the torch visited only 33 states on its 9,375-mile course. That relay involved 3,636 torchbearers.

Although the Olympic torch has traveled through Southeast Missouri in the past, it was never on a national holiday like Memorial Day, said Kim Groves of the Cape Girardeau Convention and Visitors Bureau.

"We think it will have regional appeal," she said. "There are lots of areas in a 150-mile radius that it won't get close to."

So, a joint community celebration is planned throughout the Memorial Day holiday, said Nancy Jernigan, executive director of the Area Wide United Way.

The events in Cape Girardeau County kickoff with a family picnic downtown near the Courthouse park. "Honoring Community Heroes: Past, Present and Future," is the theme for the local torch relay festivities. Former Olympian Ginny Fuldner of Monnett will join the local celebration.

Cindy Gage, a member of the United Way volunteer committee, said residents are encouraged to line the relay route and cheer on the runners.

"We want a show of support for the Olympics and the local runners," she said.

Schoolchildren also are invited to show their Olympic spirit through a banner contest, she added.

The banner theme is "Help Carry the Olympic Spirit." Each banner entered will be displayed and judged along the route.

Olympic Torch Relay at a Glance

Before the ancient Olympic games, runners who were called "heralds of peace" would travel throughout Greece and issue the clarion call to the games.

The custom was revived in 1936. Since then, a relay always precedes the games.

-- The 1996 Olympic torch was lit in Olympia, Greece, the home of the modern games. It will be extinguished at the Closing Ceremony Aug. 4.

-- The torch arrived in the United States April 27 and will stop in Cape Girardeau Memorial Day.

-- More than 10,000 torchbearers will carry the flame on its 15,280-mile journey across the country. It will spend 84 days in the United States.

-- The 3.5 pound torch will travel by runner, bicycle, 19-car train, horseback, canoe, steamboat, Great Lakes steamer, plane and sail boat before it reaches Atlanta for the Opening Ceremony July 19.

-- Each runner carries the torch about one kilometer. It travels about 180 miles daily.

-- The torch features 22 aluminum "reeds" gathered in the center. Each reed represents the 22 times the Modern Olympic Games have been held. 1996 marks the 100th anniversary of the Modern Olympic Games.

-- The flame ignited in Olympia is kept inside a lantern and closely guarded to ensure it is never extinguished. A single torch is lit from the flame for that day's relay. The torch features a dual burner system so it is resistant to wind and rain.