1968 Summer Olympics torch relay , of which was on foot and was on water. The cauldron was for the first time lit by a female athlete, Mexican hurdler Enriqueta Basilio. Basilio entered the Estadio Olímpico Universitario and ran a lap around the track before ascending the ramp up to the cauldron. 1968 Summer Olympics torch relay The 1968 Summer Olympics torch relay took part as part of the build-up to the 1968 Summer Olympics hosted in Mexico City, Mexico. The Olympic flame was lit in Olympia, Greece, and retraced the steps of Christopher Columbus, founder of the New World. This theme celebrated the link
Torch regenerative power of flame. The torch is also a symbol used by political parties, for instance by both Labour (from 1918 to 1980) and the Conservatives (from 1983 to 2006) in the UK, and the Malta Labour Party. In the seals of schools in the Philippines, the torch symbolizes the vision of education to provide enlightenment to all the students. A torch carried in relay by runners is used to light the Olympic flame which burns without interruption until the end of the Games. These torches and the relay tradition were introduced in the 1936 Summer Olympics by Carl Diem,