Annie Wayland, a member of the Illinois State soccer team, carried the Olympic torch during a portion of its trek from Atlanta to Salt Lake City as the relay passed through St. Louis on Wednesday.
Wayland, a native of St. Peters, Mo., received the torch in front of the Wentzville City Hall and carried it for approximately a quarter of a mile before handing it off to another torchbearer.
It was an awesome experience, Wayland said. It was really hard not to have a smile on my face. Its amazing thinking that you are the only person in the world doing that at that moment.
More than 200,000 individuals were anonymously nominated to be torchbearers. The potential bearers were then sent an application that was reviewed by the Salt Lake Organizing Committee and Coca-Cola to narrow the field to 11,500.
It was a great feeling, Wayland added. A 76-year-old passed the torch to me and there were a lot of people cheering as it went by. Lots of kids got out of school and went on field trips to watch.
The Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Torch Relay began on December 12, 2001 in Atlanta and will cross 46 states before making its way to Salt Lake City for the opening of the Olympic Games on February 8.
