McGill administrators to carry Olympic torch

Although the 2004 Olympic Games are set to unfold in Greece next August, two of McGill's top administrators have been invited to take part in the pomp and pageantry of the world's biggest amateur sporting event — right here in Montreal.

Robert Rabinovitch, chair of McGill's Board of Governors and president of the CBC, and Heather Munroe-Blum, McGill principal and vice-chancellor, are among the Quebec personalities selected for the Montreal leg of the Olympic Torch Relay on June 20. The Olympic Torch Relay will occur in 34 cities across 27 countries.

When Rabinovitch and Munroe-Blum carry the precious Olympic fire through our city streets, they will be among a total 120 torchbearers from Quebec. Others slated to carry the fire range from Joey Saputo, a vice-president of the Saputo cheese empire, to past Olympians Gaétan Boucher, Bruny Surin and Annie Pelletier.

The flame parade will begin at Olympic Stadium and end at TOHU, the new Cité des arts du cirque in St. Michel. The local leg of the Olympic Torch Relay is being organized by the City of Montreal, the Canadian Olympic Committee and various commercial partners.

To read upcoming announcements on torchbearers, please consult the website of the Montreal leg of the Universal Olympic Torch Relay at www.tohu.ca. The official site of the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens: www.athens2004.com.