Rio 2016: The inspiring story of Vanderlei de Lima, the man who lit the Olympic cauldron
It would make an interesting god-messenger story if Vanderlei de Lima goes on to solve Brazil’s bigger problems in the future. De Lima became famous after winning the bronze in the 2004 Athens Olympics marathon but more famous due to an incident that happened in that very race that fetched him the third place. De Lima led the race until a man grabbed on to him and rugby tackled him, disrupting his pace.
Eventually, de Lima lost his position and came third. This incident gave de Lima the extraneous fame that he has today. Neil Horan, the defrocked Irish priest who has a habit of interrupting international sport events, had tackled the de Lima. As for his justification, Horan had an unusual one – he was claiming that the second coming of Jesus is near.
Wearing a green vest and a green beret, Horan once appeared on Britain’s Got Talent and, thanks to his Irish dancing, booked a seat for the second round, until he was eventually recognized by the executives.
The Olympic creed goes, “The important thing in life is not the triumph, but the fight; the essential thing is not to have won, but to have fought well”. That’s exactly what Vanderlei de Lima did in 2004.
Vanderlei de Lima, who lit the Olympic cauldron to kick-start the games in Brazil, was clearly the right man for the honour. He may have not won the gold in 2004, but he won the hearts of millions around the world.
In 2004, after being sidetracked by an intruder, de Lima was positive as he blew kisses and swayed out his arms to an airplane, before crossing the finish line. He showed no regret of what had happened 20 minutes earlier.
This year in a poll by Globo – Brazil’s largest media outlet – asked 79,000 people who should light the cauldron, Kuerten placed first with twice as many votes as the runner-up and Olympics sailing medalist, Robert Scheidt. Third was de Lima, followed by Brazilian football legend Pelé.
Kuerten, former world No.1 and three-time French open winning tennis player, finally carried the prestigious Olympic flame into the Marcanã. He then passed it off to Hortência, 1996 Olympic women’s basketball silver medalist, until she handed it to de Lima who carried it up a flight of stairs and dipped in into the cauldron, setting it on fire and initiating the games.
Video Courtesy: Dew YO YO VIDEO