Bavly, Urussu and Bugulma warmly greet Universiade Flame

The main symbol of the World University Games began its journey across Tatarstan as the first three towns of the republic - Bavly, Urussu and Bugulma - gave a heartfelt welcome to the long-awaited Universiade Flame. A sea of smiling faces and flags greeted the Torchbearers along the entire route.

The first place to greet the Flame of the 27th World University Summer Games was Bavly. 27 Torchbearers journeyed their way through the town, among them students, athletes, representatives of the district's administration and corporate partners of the 2013 Summer Universiade. All those who were awarded the long-cherished honour of carrying the Flame through the streets of Bavly, ran a distance of 3,000 metres. The Relay concluded in the square in front of the House of Culture named after Musa Jalil. 

"The Torch Relay will go down in the history books of Bavly for all eternity. We are grateful to President of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov, government of the republic for a great honour of hosting the Flame of the World University Games in our town," said Head of the Bavlinsky Municipal District Albert Khabibullin. 

Urussu became the second location to greet the Universiade Flame on Tatarstan soil. 19 Torchbearers were cheered on by hundreds of excited local people when they made their way through the town. Special guests at the ceremony marking the Flame's arrival in Urussu were Head of the Yutazinsky Municipal District Rustem Nuriev, Deputy Head of the Tatarstan Investment Development Agency (TIDA) Liana Saetova, as well as Head of the Yutazinsky Municipal District Executive Committee Andrey Podovalov. Having run about two kilometres, the Torchbearers passed the Flame to Bugulma. 

The overall distance of the Torch Relay in Bugulma was about 5,000 metres. 31 Torchbearers kicked off the run in the square near a sports venue with a symbolic name, Fakel, which means 'Torch', and ended on the Energetik Stadium where the City Cauldron was ignited. Attending the celebrations were Deputy Head of the the Republic of Tatarstan Division of the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation Elena Polyakova, Head of the Bugulminsky Municipal District Executive Committee Tatiana Nikulina, Head of the Department for Youth Affairs, Sports and Tourism of the Bugulminsky Municipal District Ruslan Garifullin. 

The privilege of kindling the City Cauldron was granted to Head of the Bugulminsky Municipal District Ildus Kasymov and Anna Filimonova, world powerlifting champion and final Torchbearer in the Bugulma leg of the Relay. 

"Today is a momentous day in the life of our district and republic, and this day, when we welcomed the Universiade Flame to our town, will make it into the history of Bugulma," said Ildus Kasymov. "Bugulma is known as not only a major industrial hub of Tatarstan but also as home to many renowned athletes and talented youth. The Torch Relay is a truly unique project that gives us a chance to recognise achievements of our athletes and gifted young people by nominating them to be Torchbearers. I wish all lots of luck and hope that our athletes will deliver brilliant performance at the Universiade!"

"Today is a big day for me as I've become a Torchbearer for the Universiade Flame!" Torchbearer Regina Kalimullina shared her impressions. "I'm proud of my town, my republic, my country!"

Following the ceremony, Deputy Head of the the Republic of Tatarstan Division of the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation Elena Polyakova presented a replica of the Universiade Torch to Mayor of Bugulma Ildus Kasymov.  

Crowds will pack streets tomorrow in capital towns of three other municipal districts of Tatarstan - Aznakaevo, Leninogorsk and Almetyevsk - as the Universiade Torch Relay will continue its epic journey, bringing the excitement and magic of the World University Games to all parts of the republic. 

The Universiade Torch Lighting Ceremony took place at Paris-Sorbonne University where the first ‘World Student Games’ were held in 1923. The historic moment in the Torch Relay arrived when the Universiade Flame embarked on a round-the-world voyage aboard the world’s largest bark - the tall ship Sedov. On July 15th, the Torch was handed over to a team of navy cadets – the Keepers of the Universiade Flame. Travelling aboard the bark Sedov, the Torch covered 45,000 nautical miles and repeated the route of greatest sailors of all times. 

The Russian leg of the Universiade Torch Relay started off on January 25, on Russian Students' Day. Travelling from east to west, the Flame is carried through Russia’s 30 top student cities such as Khabarovsk, Yakutsk, Krasnoyarsk, Novosibirsk, Tyumen, Yekaterinburg, Kaliningrad, Arkhangelsk, Stavropol, Pyatigorsk, Sochi, Rostov-on-Don, Saint Petersburg, Vladimir, Moscow, Perm, Izhevsk, Kirov, Nizhny Novgorod, Yoshkar-Ola, Cheboksary, Ulyanovsk, Saransk, Penza, Saratov, Samara, Orenburg, Ufa and passes through 43 municipal districts of the Republic of Tatarstan, finishing its odyssey in Kazan on July 6, on the opening day of the 2013 Summer Universiade. 2,013 Torchbearers will carry the Universiade Torch as it will make its way all over the country.