The Sydney Olympics torch relay arrived in Cessnock 22 years ago next week.
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Cessnock had the honour of hosting the torch overnight on August 29, 2000, and it remains one of the town's biggest events in living memory.
More than 15,000 people turned out for the cauldron lighting ceremony at Turner Park.
Cessnock's Jenny Peel had the honour of carrying the torch into Turner Park and lighting the cauldron.
"It was absolutely fantastic... something you won't ever forget."," she recalled when speaking to the Advertiser on the torch relay's 20th anniversary in 2020.
The next morning hundreds of people braved the winter chill and lined the streets of Cessnock, Weston and Kurri Kurri to see the torch up close as it made its way to Maitland.
