BTS’ Jin has once again made history, this time as South Korea’s official representative in the Paris 2024 Olympic Torch Relay.
The K-pop idol was one of 11,000 torchbearers selected for this year’s Olympic Games, with his segment of the relay taking place on July 14, coinciding with Bastille Day, the French National Day.
In an event filled with excitement that saw fans of the superstar turn out in droves, Jin led the Louvre Museum section of the relay in Paris. The torch relay began around 8 PM local time, with Jin receiving the torch on Rue de Rivoli. Escorted by police, he carried it 200 meters toward the museum before returning it to the relay centre at the Louvre.
“I feel extremely honoured to have been able to participate in today’s torch relay. I sincerely thank ARMY and all the fans who made it possible for me to carry the torch,” Jin expressed in a press statement released by Big Hit Music, per Yonhap News Agency.
The French domestic relay has been underway since May 8, starting in Marseille. The torch will continue its journey through notable landmarks of the capital city, passing through various French provinces before returning to Paris on July 26 for the Olympics’ opening ceremony.
The flame, first lit in Olympia, Greece, on April 16, 2024, will cover 400 cities in France and some overseas regions before the grand opening.
Previous torchbearers from past Olympics have included the likes of Muhammad Ali for the 1996 Atlanta Games and David Beckham for the 2012 London Games, placing Jin in a prestigious lineage of torchbearers.
Jin’s participation in the relay comes shortly after completing his mandatory military service on June 12, making him the first BTS member to do so.
In addition to this remarkable achievement, Jin is scheduled to release a solo album this year and has completed filming for an MBC variety show called The Half-Star Hotel in Lost Island. The episodes are set to be broadcast soon.
Meanwhile, on June 12, the K-pop star completed his mandatory service and received a warm welcome from his BTS bandmates J-Hope, Jimin, Jungkook, V, and RM at a military base in Yeoncheon, South Korea. Later in the day, the band joyously celebrated Jin’s return with a private celebration at the HYBE headquarters, sharing a photo of their reunion on the social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter).
The picture showed the band members reunited with balloons in the background that read “Jin is back.” Accompanying the photo was the caption, “I’m home.”
Watch Jin carrying the Olympic Torch in Paris below.
