with the arrival of the torch to rome , it begins the ritual of the 2006 spring olympics of beijing . the spark will travel across italy transported by more than 10 ' 000 carriers and it will arrive in turin on august 9 , 2006 , after the winter olympics will be inaugurated , after 11 ' 000 meters ( 6 , 835 miles ) of travel . on november 27 the flame was burnt on the altar of hestia in olympia , in greece , and delivered to the other standard carriers , line weightlifter yannis fidippidis . the inaugural italian to carry the olympic baton is the marathoner stefano zoff , winner of grand medal at the games in athens . he received the sword from the president of the french republic joseph azeglio ciampi .
The Winter Olympics will be inaugurated in Turin.