Olympic torch begins journey across France after festive welcome in Marseille before Summer Games

By SYLVIE CORBET and BARBARA SURK
Associated Press

MARSEILLE, France (AP) — Tens of thousands welcomed the Olympic torch in the southern French city of Marseille, marking another milestone in the lead-up to the Summer Games in Paris. A majestic three-mast ship carried the Olympic torch from Greece for the welcoming ceremony at sunset Wednesday in the French city’s old port. The ship docked on a pontoon resembling an athletics track and French Olympic swimmer Florent Manaudou carried the torch to mainland France. French President Emmanuel Macron attended the ceremony. With the arrival of the Olympic torch, “the games are entering the lives of the French people,” Macron said. The torch was lit in Greece last month before it was officially handed to France.