Marseille (AFP) - The torch relay for the Paris Olympics will start in the southern port of Marseille in April 2024, organisers announced on Friday.
The torch will arrive in Marseille from Greece, the spiritual home of the Olympics, on a three-masted ship.
It will set the tone for a Games whose opening ceremony will be held on the Seine in Paris.
"In the spring of 2024, Marseille will have the honour and good fortune to be the first city to welcome the Olympic flame on French soil," organisers Paris 2024 said in a statement.
"The Belem, a majestic three-masted ship, will carry the flame across the Mediterranean Sea from Athens to Marseille, two cities closely connected by a shared history."
The ancient Greek colony of Massalia was founded on the French Mediterranean coast in 600 BC.The settlement would become modern-day Marseille.
Chief organiser Tony Estanguet said Marseille "was a natural and clear choice" to host the arrival of the torch.
He noted Marseille's deep links with sport -- the city's club the only one from France to be crowned European champions -- and said the city "reflects the image of the Games: popular, festive, warm and multi-cultural".
"It's not just the flame that will arrive in Marseille: the Games themselves will be returning to France, 100 years after the last summer edition!" he added.
After its arrival surrounded by an armada of boats in the city's old port the torch relay will make its way across the country, arriving in Paris on July 14, Bastille Day.
On July 26 it will light the cauldron during the opening ceremony to signal the start of the 2024 Games.
Marseille will host sailing and 10 men's and women's football matches for the Games.
