VIDEO: Brazilian marathoner who was attacked in 2004 lights Rio Olympic cauldron

Su premio: Vanderlei #DeLima fue el encargado de encender el pebetero olímpico en la ceremonia inaugural de los Juegos Olímpicos de #Río2016. En #Atenas2004 el maratonista estaba a punto de conquistar el oro y un espectador se abalanzó sobre él y lo hizo perder. Foto: Sergei Ilnitsky – EFE

A photo posted by @ovacion on Aug 5, 2016 at 8:17pm PDT

The Brazilian runner who was attacked during the 2004 Olympic marathon in Athens was given the honour of lighting the Olympic cauldron on Friday. Vanderlei de Lima carried the Olympic torch up the stairs at the Maracana Stadium in Rio and went on to signal the official start of the Olympic Games.

See other moments from Friday’s opening ceremony at the Olympics that you’re not going to want to miss.

De Lima replaced soccer legend Pele, who could not make an appearance due to deteriorating health, as the final carrier of the Olympic torch. The lighting of the Olympic cauldron is the culmination of the Olympic torch relay, a tradition that brings the flame from Athens, Greece to the host city of each Games.

RELATED: Remembering Canada’s greatest Olympic moments: Women make athletics debut in 1928.

Video of de Lima lighting the Olympic cauldron (only available in Canada)

Marathon runner Vanderlei Cordeiro de Lima lights the #Rio2016 Olympic Cauldron at the #OpeningCeremony! https://t.co/0kWwrhzALk

— CBC Olympics (@CBCOlympics) August 6, 2016

The 46-year-old is best known for winning a bronze medal at the 2004 Olympics. The Brazilian was attacked by a spectator, Cornelius Horan, while in the lead of the race and faded to third. The incident happened around the 35K mark of the 42.2K race which ruined his momentum and led de Lima to suffer from leg cramps.

Vanderlei Cordeiro de Lima famous for taking bronze after this in Athens. #Rio2016 #OpeningCeremony pic.twitter.com/WHonWnbv7q

— Chris Chavez (@ChrisChavezSI) August 6, 2016

The Irish spectator was not imprisoned for the act and only fined. Horan is well-known for running onto the race track at a Formula One event in 2003.

Video of the 2004 attack

De Lima was praised after the race for his demeanour and was awarded the Pierre de Coubertin prize for sportsmanship at the end of the 2004 Games. De Lima danced across the line and gained international attention for how he dealt with the adversity. The Brazilian federation filed an appeal to name de Lima as a co-winner of the race due to the circumstances but the appeal was denied.

RELATED: Remembering Canada’s greatest Olympic moments: Donovan Bailey wins 100m gold.

Italy’s Stefano Baldini went on to win the men’s marathon followed by American Meb Keflezighi. Keflezighi, 41, will represent the United States at the 2016 Olympics in the marathon, his third trip to the Summer Games.

The Olympic Cauldron is lit – ???? Good luck to all the athletes that are competing in the @rio2016 #olympics (c)Getty Images

A photo posted by The Olympic Games (@olympics) on Aug 5, 2016 at 8:22pm PDT

Rio’s Olympic cauldron is noticeably smaller than those of previous Games. The spirals around the flame represent the sun.

Want to stream the Games for free from your desktop or mobile device? See our information page here.