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ATHENS -- The Olympic flame was handed to organizers of the Sochi Winter Olympics in a ceremony at the site of the first modern summer games on Saturday. Actress Ino Menegaki, dressed as a high priestess, who lit the flame in Ancient Olympia last Sunday, lit a torch from a cauldron inside Athens Panathinaiko Stadium. The flame, placed in a lantern, was handed over to Hellenic Olympic Committee president Spyros Kapralos, who, in turn, handed it to Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak. After a seven-day run through Greece, the flame will cover 65,000 kilometres (40,000 miles) on Russian soil. The record-setting relay will start on Monday in Moscow, in a ceremony attended by Russia President Vladimir Putin, and will finish in Sochi on Feb. 7, the opening day of the games. The flame will travel through all 83 Russian regions, from the enclave of Kaliningrad in the west, to Chukotka, the region facing Alaska, to the east. In a brief speech before the handover of the flame, Kozak referred to the "difficult road" the games organizers and the IOC had travelled from the day the Olympics were awarded to Sochi, in 2007. Kozak said organizers had undertaken "the biggest investment project in the history of the Olympic Games." The Sochi Olympics are projected to be the costliest ever. Spending on infrastructure is projected at $50 billion, up from the $12 billion estimate at the time the city won the bid. "We will fulfil all the engagement we have undertaken to the Olympic movement," Kozak added. The Winter Games have drawn the wrath of gay rights activists who have pointed out at discrimination against gays in Russia and a recent law banning "homosexual propaganda." The International Olympic Committee has warned participating athletes not to make a public issue out of this during the games. Inside Panathinaiko Stadium, two activists silently raised a rainbow flag, but there were otherwise no demonstrations during the ceremony. Early Saturday afternoon, as the flame moved from the Acropolis, where it had stayed overnight, to a cauldron inside the courtyard of the Acropolis Museum, a few dozen gay rights activists gathered on the museums steps in a peaceful protest. Some held rainbow flags, while others held a banner reading "Homophobia is not in the Olympic Spirit" and "Love is not Propaganda." Another banner mentioned "Putins victims" allegedly beaten, raped or murdered for being gay. "The Olympics should have taken a stand against this law in Russia because the Olympic ideals are for supporting human rights and diversity and thats not whats happening in Russia," said protester Zak Kostopoulos. Police presence was light and there were no incidents. Scarpe Jordan Ingrosso . - The Kansas City Royals are hoping All-Star catcher Salvador Perez will be back in a few days. Scarpe Jordan Uomo Saldi . Forsman closed with a 3-under 69 in windy conditions Sunday for his third Champions Tour title. He beat Jay Don Blake by two shots. http://www.airjordanscontate.it/. Seriously. Seven years of losing has brought many different faces, players and management, to the annual pre-season get-to-know-the-team round up. Jordan Scarpe Sconti . -- The Seattle Seahawks and wide receiver Sidney Rice have agreed to terms on a deal. Scarpe Jordan a Poco Prezzo . - IndyCar racing officials expressed confidence on Monday that the NOLA Motorsports Park will be able to complete more $4.Melbourne, Australia - The third time was the charm for Li Na. The fourth-seeded Chinese star beat Dominika Cibulkova 7-6 (7-3), 6-0 at Rod Laver Arena to capture her first Australian Open title on Saturday. Li played in her third final in four years at Melbourne Park. She lost to Kim Clijsters in 2011 and Victoria Azarenka last year before finally breaking through at the seasons first Grand Slam event against the 20th-seeded Cibulkova. "After I win the match, I really, really exciting," Li said. "I think I have drops still coming down, you know. I try to have hug with the team, but is too high. I cannot catch it (laughter)." Her win came at the end of a fortnight featuring an array of surprising results on the womens side. It was the first time since 1997 that none of the top three seeds made the semifinals. Li committed 25 of her 30 unforced errors in a competitive opening set before she unexpectedly breezed through the second. She had a 34-11 advantage in winners, many coming on her lethal backhand, and converted half of her 10 break-point chances. The second double fault by Cibulkova in the matchs opening game gave Li an early break. A double fault then hurt Li as Cibulkova gained a break to level the first set at 3-all. Li earned a break point with a strong backhand winner in the ninth game, but two of her forehands flew long and Cibulkova was able to hold for a 5-4 lead. After closing out a relative easy service game with an ace to extend the set, Li earned two break points when she followed up Cibulkovas sixth double fault with a blistering ccrosscourt backhand.dddddddddddd Cibulkova then netted a backhand to give Li a 6-5 lead before she broke back to force a tiebreak. Li raced out to a commanding 5-1 lead in the tiebreak and she later claimed the 70-minute first set when Cibulkova dumped a backhand into the net. The second set lasted only 27 minutes and ended with Cibulkova sending a ground stroke long. "You know, it was my first Grand Slam finals and Im just proud with the way I handle it," Cibulkova said. "You know, I just went on the court. I wanted to play my best tennis. It wasnt easy against her because she was playing extremely well. So Im quite happy." Li, who turns 32 next month, captured her second Grand Slam title, adding to her victory at the 2011 French Open, and improved to 9-11 in career finals. She also is just the fourth woman to win the Aussie Open crown after saving a match point. She fought off the match point in the third round against Lucie Safarova and joined Monica Seles (1991), Jennifer Capriati (2002) and Serena Williams (2003 and 2005) to accomplish the feat. "Yeah, start of tournament everybody talking about the age," Li said. "I would like to say age is nothing. Still can win the Grand Slam. So pretty happy about my age. I got more experience on the court." Cibulkova, who stands just 5-foot-3, knocked off No. 3 seed Maria Sharapova in the fourth round and No. 5 seed Agnieszka Radwanska in the semifinals to become Slovakias first Grand Slam finalist. The 24-year-old fell to 3-6 in her career title tilts and 0-5 against Li. ' ' '