Official 1984 Sarajevo Olympics torch that was presented to Ante Sučić, the former mayor of Sarajevo and Executive Board president of the Olympic Organizing Committee for the XIV Winter Olympiad. The torch is composed of lightweight metal with a long combustion tube, measuring 22.75″ in length and 4″ at its widest point, manufactured by the Mizuno Corporation of Japan. The handle is silver-colored and topped by a gold-tone base inscribed, "Sarajevo '84," with the Mizuno logo also raised in relief. The combustion tube twice bears the Olympic rings and emblem of the Sarajevo games. Includes the original torch cap, as well as the original display stand. This torch bears trivial wear and is unused (not burned). For the Sarajevo relay, the route was split into two routes of east and west so that it would pass through the whole country and promote the Olympic ideal of coexistence. In all, it was carried by 1,600 torchbearers over a distance of 5,289 km. This was the first Winter Olympics held in a Communist state.
A successful businessman and sports enthusiast, Ante (Anto) Sučić (1929-1985) was a central figure in bringing the Olympic flame to the Sarajevo valley in 1984. His experience with infrastructure led to the city’s long overdue modernization, with loans being attained to greenlight construction of a new city highway, an extensive gas ring, and a costly water supply network. When the labor was done, Sučić let his words sway the voting committee: ‘I want her for the sake of our children, the children of our country, the children of this World of ours. Let it be better and more beautiful for them than for us.’ On May 18, 1978, during the 80th IOC session, Sarajevo was selected as host by a margin of three votes over Sapporo, Japan. According to the consignor, who obtained this torch directly from Sučić’s family, this offered torch was the first to reach Sarajevo following its historic bid run.
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