The Olympic flame has taken to Twitter to express its relief at being re-lit for the Rio 2016 torch relay.
The flame's official account tweeted on Thursday, offering revealing insight into its difficult existence since being extinguished at the end of the 2012 Games in London.
After spending years in the darkness I can’t wait to see the light of day again. Almost time to return
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But upon its ignition in Greece ahead of a 12,000-mile journey across Brazil to Rio de Janeiro, the flame's spirits lifted.