# Is this the earliest/longest Torch relay? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 9, 2008, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-earliest-longest-torch-relay/444555 "2008-04-09T02:31:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 2\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2008, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-earliest-longest-torch-relay/444555/1 "2008-04-09T02:31:03Z")
Let me get my bias out before I get to the actual, factual question. I’m tired of the Chinese Olympics and they don’t actually start until August. Given that, given that I’m not a fan of the Olympics of any kind or year, and given that I consider the Olympic Torch Relay just a publicity stunt, can anyone tell me, factually, if the Torch Relay always starts this early? I seem to recall that it used to only took a couple of weeks and it only went through the host country. When and how did this worldwide tour for the damn torch relay start? Did we do it in LA in 1984? For Montreal in '76? For Sydney whenever they had the Olympics there? ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2008, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-earliest-longest-torch-relay/444555/2 "2008-04-09T02:48:52Z")
> [@](#): > > The modern torch relay was introduced by Joseph Goebbels, as part of an effort to turn the games into a glorification of the Third Reich. Source: [Olympic flame - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympic_Flame) The same Wikipedia page has a table showing the various torch relays from 1936 to today.