The Final Leg is the highlight of the Torch Run year. This takes place each year on the day of Summer Games Opening Ceremonies. Law Enforcement agencies carry the “Flame of Hope” torch from the State Capitol in Frankfort to Summer Games at Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond.

The Final Leg is actually made up of several short runs to give the group time to carry the message of the Torch Run and Special Olympics to as many communities as possible on the day the State Summer Games start. Torch Run volunteers from across the state gather in Frankfort on the morning of the Final Leg for the Final Leg Opening Ceremonies and Torch Lighting. After a short run, they gather on the FInal Leg bus and head to the next destination. The Final Leg route varies some from year to year, but maintains a course through Cnetral Kentucky so that the "Flame of Hope" can arrive on time for the Special Olympics Kentucky State Summer Games.

The run is just one of the many events that make up the Final Leg festivities. Once in Richmond Final Leg participants join the annual VIP reception that precedes the Summer Games Opening Ceremonies. Torch Run members play a vital role in those Opening Ceremonies, carrying the torch into the stadium and joining Special Olympics athletes in lighting the ceremonial cauldron. Starting in 2004, Madison County FOP Lodge 47 began hosting a cookout that followed the Opening Ceremonies. During that event the annual Torch Run award winners are announced. Circle of Honor award winners also receive their gifts during Final Leg festivities.

In 2010 two more events were added to the Final Leg experience. Jefferson County Deputy Sheriff and ultramarathoner Jose Wilkie carried the Flame of Hope all the way from Louisville to Frankfort during the Flame of Hope Run on the Thursday before the Final Leg. On the Saturday following Final Leg, a golf outing was held at The Bull Golf Course in Richmond for Torch Run members who stayed over from the night before..

Many smaller runs take place throughout the state leading up to the final leg. Each of these runs shows local communities the efforts that their own Law Enforcement community has made for Special Olympics.

For more information about how your agency can participate in the Final Leg, contact Bob Mauney, Torch Run Director, at 502-456-8159 or via e-mail at bgmauney@insightbb.com.