The 1996 Olympic cauldron, famously lit by Muhammad Ali, will be moved to Centennial Park in the heart of downtown Atlanta.
The cauldron is currently atop a 120-foot tower in the Summerhill neighborhood, where 30 years ago the Olympic Stadium hosted the Opening Ceremony and track and field.
That stadium became the Atlanta Braves’ Turner Field after the Games, then in 2017 was renovated to become Georgia State’s football stadium.
Centennial Park is 1.5 miles north of the stadium, near the Georgia World Congress Center, Georgia Aquarium and World of Coca-Cola. It’s one of the nationwide fan festival locations for the FIFA World Cup.
“We are very excited about the prominent location where the Olympic cauldron will be displayed in Centennial Olympic Park, combining the elements of the most iconic moment of the Centennial Games with its greatest physical legacy,” Billy Payne, who was president of the 1996 Olympic organizing committee, said in a press release.
Georgia State said it is working with Payne and former Atlanta Mayor Andrew Young to move the top portion of the cauldron while preserving the tower and an Olympic rings bridge in Summerhill.
In 2028, the Summer Games return to the U.S. for the first time since 1996 with Los Angeles hosting for a third time.
