By Sarah Carrillo
Staff Writer
Pepperdine junior Christiana Loew became a part of Olympic history last Friday when she ran the Olympic torch in Oakland, Calif.
“The planning was seamless and everything went perfect,” said Loew, who completed a two-mile segment with the torch.
Her special day began an hour and a half before she ran at an orientation at a Chevrolet dealership.
“The first thing I remembered at the orientation was looking around at the amazing people surrounding me,” Loew said. “Every torch-bearer has done something to change the world in order to be chosen for this honor. There were teachers and one woman who was running for her diabetic son.”
Loew was chosen to run in part because of her father.
Christiana Loew nominated her father Bob Loew with a 100-word essay describing why he deserved to run with the torch.
“It was difficult to write the essay because there was so much to say about him,” she said. “He has wanted to do this for years.” After the committee chose her father, they asked Christiana if she would like to run as well.
The Olympic torch has been traveling across the United States for a year, and will arrive in Salt Lake City just in time for the opening ceremonies.
“It was an amazing opportunity, because for that moment, I was in the Olympic Games,” Loew said. “Who wouldn‘t want to do this?”
Before the run, she and the other participants were instructed on how to pass the torch and what the day’s schedule would be.
There was a parade ahead of the runners that entertained the crowd.
“The streets were lined with people,” Loew said. “It was a very diverse crowd and everyone was very supportive and excited and in awe of the Olympic flame, which is the same flame that came all the way from Mount Olympus.”
Then, everyone boarded a bus that dropped off each runner at their designated point a few moments before the flame was passed to them. While running, Loew was surrounded by five police escorts and a media van with video and still cameras recording her journey.
At the halfway point in her run, Loew stopped to take photos for the press.
“It was pretty cool, I was like the poster child for that stretch of the run,” she said.
“It was over way too quickly,” Loew added. “But right after my run I sprinted ahead to meet up with my Dad so I could run with him.”
Loew’s excitement continued even after she completed the run.
“I felt like a celebrity for that day,” Loew said. “People were coming up to me and asking about my experience and while I was running, I set the pace for everyone, which made me feel really important.”
At the after reception for the torch runners, Loew felt like a part of something special. “I met so many other amazing people, it was such a thrilling honor to be a part of this,” she said.
Loew does have a few souvenirs from her day. All the torch runners wore white sweat suits, which they were allowed to keep, and given an instructional video about how to run with the torch.
Also, if a runner chooses to make a donation to the Olympic committee, then he or she can keep the torch they ran with.
“My Dad kept his torch, and I still get the same feeling I had when I was running when I hold the torch now,” Loew said. “It really was a bonding experience between me and my Dad and was one of the most thrilling things I have ever done.”
January 24, 2002