Noah Palansky, 13, lights the Olympic cauldron at The Forks in Winnipeg. (CBC)A crush of cheering Winnipeggers followed the Olympic flame as it snaked its way through the city on Tuesday evening.

A jubilant Olympic torch celebration held at The Forks in the city's downtown capped the day's torch relay events. Hundreds, possibly thousands of people attended the event.

A high point of the day was watching Noah Palansky, 13, light an Olympic cauldron in front of the jubilant crowd.

With dramatic flair, the teen carried the torch the final 300 metres to the celebration's main stage. Palansky whipped it in circles around his head prior to setting the cauldron alight at about 7 p.m. CT.

He was designated the official community torchbearer in November.

The student at the Gray Academy of Jewish Education was chosen because of his commitment to cancer research and care. He began fundraising for CancerCare Manitoba last year after his mother, Naomi, was diagnosed with the disease.

People cheered with delight as Palansky carried out his duty.

Excited Winnipeggers happily joined in the torch relay celebration held at The Forks on Tuesday. (CBC)The celebration was slated to run until 8 p.m. and included performances by dancers and musicians as well as a fireworks display.

"People are everywhere, hugging and holding hands," CBC reporter Sheila North-Wilson said. Many were also holding Canada flags and other patriotic signs.

"Lots of celebration here."

The only low point of the evening was for motorists as traffic was snarled throughout the downtown area as the torch snaked its way toward The Forks.

Hundreds follow flame's progress

Traffic in downtown Winnipeg was snarled in spots as the relay snaked its way through the area. (CBC)The Olympic flame officially entered the city at about 4:30 p.m. Hundreds gathered near the Ed Golding Memorial Arena on Pandora Avenue in the Transcona area to mark the start of the flame's procession.

At 5:30 p.m., onlookers lined the side of Nairn Avenue at Keenleyside Street to watch an elated torchbearer pass.

"He looks very happy. People are very excited and cheering," North-Wilson said.

The torch was carried into St. Boniface, along Provencher Boulevard. It continued onto Waterfront Drive, into the Exchange District and out to Main Street where it turned west along Portage Avenue to Memorial Boulevard and had a brief stop at the Manitoba legislature around 6:30 p.m.

The cross-Canada torch relay arrived in Falcon Lake on Tuesday morning, about 130 kilometres east of Winnipeg and passed through eight Manitoba communities before arriving in the city.

The torch relay will leave Winnipeg on Wednesday, and make a loop through the Interlake region, including Peguis First Nation about 145 kilometres north of Winnipeg, before briefly returning to the city on Thursday.

From there it will make an appearance in 20 other communities south and west of the city.

It will arrive in Portage la Prairie on Thursday and leave on Friday, headed for Brandon. The last place in Manitoba the torch will visit is Virden on Friday before it crosses into Saskatchewan.

In all, the relay will visit 33 Manitoba communities.