Atlanta will welcome the Olympic flame again three decades after hosting the 1996 Olympic Games. The city has been confirmed as the first stop in the United States for the Los Angeles 2028 (LA28) torch relay, a journey that will travel through all 50 states before reaching the Opening Ceremony. The selection connects two moments in American Olympic history: the Centennial Games held in Atlanta and the upcoming edition that will have Los Angeles as its main stage.
The relay will begin in spring 2028, after the flame is lit in ancient Olympia, Greece, and carried to the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens. From there, it will begin its journey to the United States, where Atlanta will mark the start of a route designed to bring the Olympic symbol to different communities, cities and regions across the country. The full route will be announced in 2027 and will also include cultural and sporting celebrations in different parts of the United States.
Atlanta and its connection to the 1996 Olympic Games
The arrival of the flame in Atlanta has significance that goes beyond the logistical planning of the relay. In 1996, the city welcomed delegations from around the world for the Centennial Olympic Games, an edition that marked the return of the world’s largest sporting event to the United States after the 1984 Los Angeles Games. Three decades later, the same city will once again be part of a symbolic moment for the Olympic Movement, this time as the starting point of the U.S. journey toward LA28.
Atlanta Mayor André Dickens highlighted this connection with the past, noting that the 1996 Games helped transform the city and showcase a modern Atlanta to an international audience. For the city, the return of the flame represents a new connection with the Olympic Movement, from a different perspective: not as a host city for the competitions, but as one of the first American communities to receive the symbol that will travel toward Los Angeles. From Atlanta, the relay will continue through iconic locations and feature cultural and sporting activities in selected cities.
A journey through all 50 states toward Los Angeles 2028
The scale of the relay will be one of its defining features. The LA28 organization plans for the flame to travel through all 50 U.S. states, allowing people from different regions to take part in the journey toward the Games. Casey Wasserman, president of LA28, has described the route as an opportunity to share the flame with communities across the country, while different Americans will have the chance to carry it on its way to the Opening Ceremony.
The journey will begin following the traditional lighting of the Olympic flame in Olympia, from where it will be carried to Athens before crossing the Atlantic. Once in the United States, Atlanta will be the first destination, with the cities that will form part of the route to be announced later. The nominations and criteria for those who will be responsible for carrying the torch will also be revealed. Both the Olympic and Paralympic relays will be supported by presenting sponsors, including Coca-Cola and JPMorgan Chase, while the full route will be unveiled in 2027, ahead of the relay’s start in spring 2028.
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