Reasons to Love the French

Only weather has previously succeeded in snuffing out the Olympic flame, just twice in its history. Today French officials managed it three times.

The Olympic flame has travelled on the Concorde, a Native American canoe and a camel. Before Sydney 2000, divers even swam past the Great Barrier Reef with a scientifically advanced waterproof version. Keeping the torch lit on its travels is the responsibility of “flame attendants” who accompany the fire 24 hours a day.

Now the Olympic Torch is apparently using public transportation to avoid the massive protests against China's human rights record. French officials extinguished it for "technical reasons," and according to CNN, "The torch was snuffed out, put on a bus and fired up again several times to dodge protesters."

The French probably used the unscheduled respite to have a smoke and a coffee.