I was involved in the early days of planning this torch relay. John Furlong spoke passionately to all of us at the executive committee. What we wanted was for this torch, this flame, to be accessible to all Canadians and within an hour's travel of most villages and cities in this country. That is how we chose our path. We wanted this to be available for all to go to. I can tell you that the planning started two and a half years ago.
On November 5th, 2009. See this statement in context.