The 1998 Winter Olympics torch relay was run from December 19, 1997 until February 7, 1998 prior to the

1998 Winter Olympics The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially known as the and commonly known as Nagano 1998 ( ja, 長野1998), was a winter multi-sport event held from 7 to 22 February 1998, mainly in Nagano, Japan, with some events taking place in th ...

in Nagano. The route covered around and involved over 6,916 torchbearers. Midori Ito lit the cauldron at the opening ceremony.

Route

Japan

In December 1997, Midori Ito, silver medalist in

figure skating Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, when contested at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic disciplines are me ...

at the

1992 Winter Olympics ) , nations = 64 , athletes = 1,801 (1313 men, 488 women) , events = 57 in 6 sports (12 disciplines) , opening = 8 February 1992 , closing = 23 February 1992 , opened_by = President François Mitterrand , cauldron ...

and

Eishiro Saito (November 11, 1911 - April 22, 2002) was a Japanese businessman, the former President of Nippon Steel, the 6th Chairman of the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren) from 1986 to 1991, President of the Japan Science Foundation from 1988, President o ...

, Chairman of the

Nagano Olympic Organizing Committee The Nagano Organizing Committee for the Olympic Winter Games of 1998 (NAOC) was the organizing committee for the 1998 Winter Olympics in the city of Nagano, Japan. The committee was established shortly after Nagano was selected as the host city i ...

, brought the

Olympic Torch The Olympic flame is a symbol used in the Olympic movement. It is also a symbol of continuity between ancient and modern games. Several months before the Olympic Games, the Olympic flame is lit at Olympia, Greece. This ceremony starts the Olym ...

Ryutaro Hashimoto was a Japanese politician who served as the Prime Minister of Japan from 1996 to 1998. He was the leader of one of the largest factions within the ruling LDP through most of the 1990s and remained a powerful back-room player in Japanese politi ...

, at the time the

Prime Minister of Japan The prime minister of Japan ( Japanese: 内閣総理大臣, Hepburn: ''Naikaku Sōri-Daijin'') is the head of government of Japan. The prime minister chairs the Cabinet of Japan and has the ability to select and dismiss its Ministers of S ...

Nagano Prefecture

;Eastern Japan route #23 January: Kawakami, Minamiaiki, Minamimaki, Kitaaiki #24 January: Koumi, Yachiho, Sakumachi, Usuda #25 January:

Saku Saku may refer to: Places *Saku, Nagano, a city in Japan *Saku, Nagano (Minamisaku), a town in Japan *Saku Parish, a rural municipality in Harju County, Estonia **Saku, Estonia, a small borough in Saku Parish, Harju County, Estonia *Saku Constituen ...

Karuizawa is a resort town located in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 20,323 in 9897 households, and a population density of 130 persons per km². The total area of the town is . Karuizawa is one of the oldest and most ...

#26 January:

Miyota is a town located in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 15,562 in 6897 households, and a population density of 260 persons per km². The total area of the town is . Geography Miyota is located on the eastern bo ...

, Komoro, Kitamimaki #27 January: Asashina, Mochizuki, Tateshina #29 January: Wada, Nagato, Takeshi #30 January: Maruko, Tōbu, Sanada #31 January: Aoki, Ueda #1 February: Sakae,

Nozawaonsen is a village located in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. , the village had an estimated population of 3,653 in 1395 households and a population density of 63 persons per km². The total area of the village is . Geography Nozawaonsen is located in m ...

#2 February: Kijimaidara, Iiyama,

Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...

#3 February: Yamanouchi, Nakano #4 February: Shinano, Toyono, Samizu #5 February:

Obuse is a town located in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 10,999 in 3832 households, and a population density of 580 persons per km2. The total area of the town is . Geography Obuse is located in northern Nagano Pr ...

, Takayama,

Suzaka is a city located in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 50,828 in 19,979 households, and a population density of 334 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Suzaka is located in northern Naga ...

;Pacific Ocean route #23 January: Urugi, Neba, Hiraya, Namiai #24 January: Seinaiji, Achi, Iida #25 January: Shimojō,

Anan Anan or ANAN may refer to: People * Anan (name) Places * Anan, Haute-Garonne, a commune in the Haute-Garonne ''département'', France * Anan, Nagano, a town in Nagano, Japan * Anan, Tokushima, a city in Tokushima, Japan Other uses * ''Anan'' ( ...

, Yasuoka #26 January: Tenryū, Minamishinano,

Kami are the deities, divinities, spirits, phenomena or "holy powers", that are venerated in the Shinto religion. They can be elements of the landscape, forces of nature, or beings and the qualities that these beings express; they can also be the sp ...

#27 January: Takagi, Takamori, Matsukawa, Oshika #29 January: Nakagawa, Iijima, Komagane #30 January: Miyada,

Hase The Hase is a long river of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is a right tributary of the Ems, but part of its flow goes to the Else, that is part of the Weser basin. Its source is in the Teutoburg Forest, south-east of Osnabrück, on the north s ...

, Takatō #31 January: Ina, Minamiminowa, Minowa #1 February: Tatsuno, Fujimi,

Hara Hara may refer to: Art and entertainment * Hara (band), a Romanian pop-band * ''Hara'' (film), a 2014 Kannada-language drama film * ''Hara'' (sculpture), a 1989 artwork by Deborah Butterfield * Goo Hara (1991-2019), South Korean idol singer ...

#2 February: Chino, Suwa #3 February: Shimosuwa, Okaya #4 February: Ōoka,

Ogawa Ogawa (written: lit. "small river" or in hiragana) is the 30th most common Japanese surname. Less common variants are (also "small river") or ("tail river"). Notable people with the surname include: *, American poet *, Japanese footballer * ...

, Nakajō #5 February: Kinasa, Togakushi ;Japan Sea route #23 January: Otari,

Hakuba is a village located in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. , the village had an estimated population of 9,007 in 4267 households, and a population density of 48 persons per km2. The total area of the village is . Hakuba is an internationally renowned s ...

#24 January: Miasa, Yasaka, Ōmachi #25 January:

Ikeda Ikeda may refer to: * Ikeda (surname), a Japanese surname * Ikeda (comics), a character in ''Usagi Yojimbo'' * Ikeda clan, a Japanese clan * Ikeda map, chaotic attractor * ''Ikeda'' (annelid) a genus of the family Ikedidae Places * Ikeda, Osaka i ...

, Matsukawa #27 January: Yamaguchi, Nagiso, Ōkuwa, Agematsu #28 January: Mitake, Ōtaki, Kaida #29 January: Kisofukushima, Hiyoshi, Kiso, Narakawa #30 January: Shiojiri, Asahi, Yamagata #31 January:

Matsumoto Matsumoto (松本 or 松元, "base of the pine tree") may refer to: Places * Matsumoto, Nagano (松本市), a city ** Matsumoto Airport, an airport southwest of Matsumoto, Nagano * Matsumoto, Kagoshima (松元町), a former town now part of the c ...

, Hata #1 February: Nagawa, Azumi, Azusagawa #2 February: Misato, Horigane, Toyoshina #3 February: Hotaka, Akashina,

Shiga is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Shiga Prefecture has a population of 1,412,916 (1 October 2015) and has a geographic area of . Shiga Prefecture borders Fukui Prefecture to the north, Gifu Prefecture to the northe ...

#4 February: Ikusaka, Honjō, Sakakita,

Omi is a hereditary noble title ('' kabane'') of ancient Japan. It was given to the descendants of the Imperial Family before Emperor Kōgen. Along with ''Muraji'', ''Omi'' was reserved for the head of the most powerful clans during the Kofun period ...

Sakai is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. It has been one of the largest and most important seaports of Japan since the medieval era. Sakai is known for its keyhole-shaped burial mounds, or kofun, which date from the fifth century and inclu ...

#5 February: Sakaki, Nagano, Sakaki, Chikuma, Nagano, Kamiyamada, Chikuma, Nagano, Togura, Chikuma, Nagano, Koshoku

References

External links

1998 torch relay via IOC website
{{Olympic torch relays 1998 Winter Olympics, Torch Relay, 1998 Winter Olympics Olympic torch relays