Beijing 2008 Olympic Torch Relay Planned Route and Torch Design Unveiled

Beijing 2008 Olympic Torch Relay Planned Route and Torch Design Unveiled

April 27, 2007

    BEIJING, April 27 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- The Beijing
2008 Olympic Torch Relay will traverse the longest
distance, cover the greatest area and include the largest
number of people, according to plans released tonight
during a grand ceremony held in the China Millennium
Monument in Beijing by BOCOG, the Beijing Organizing
Committee for the Games of XXIX Olympiad.
    The planned route, revealed by Luo Gan, member of the
standing committee of the Political Bureau of CPC Central
Committee, and who was joined by International Olympic
Committee President Jacques Rogge, would last 130 days and
travel 137,000 kilometers. And the Beijing 2008 Olympic
torch design was unveiled by State Councilor and BOCOG
first vice-president Chen Zhili, with IOC Coordination
Commission Chairman Hein Verbruggen alongside.
    "As the prelude to the Beijing Olympic Games, the
Beijing 2008 Olympic Torch Relay is one of the most
important ceremonies and a major means to spread and
promote the Olympic spirit," said BOCOG President Liu
Qi. "As one of the grand ceremonies for the Beijing
Olympic Games, the Torch Relay of the Beijing 2008 Olympic
Games has set its theme as the 'Journey of Harmony' and the
slogan 'Light the Passion, Share the Dream'."
    Liu said, "The torch will be passed on in all the
five continents around the world and throughout China. It
is our hope that the Beijing Olympic Torch Relay will once
again spread the Olympic spirit all over the world and
demonstrate Chinese people's passion for the Olympic
Movement. The relay will showcase the people, beautiful
scenery, cultural heritage in countries, regions and cities
along the relay route. It will enhance mutual understanding
and friendship among people of different countries.
Moreover, it will further expound the rich implication of
our theme slogan 'One World One Dream'."
    "We are sending invitations to people all over the
world to share the joy and glory brought by the Beijing
Olympic Games," Liu added.
    "By traveling along the historic 'Silk Road', a
symbol of ancient trade links between China and the rest of
the world, crossing the five continents and going to new
places, the Beijing 2008 Torch Relay will, as its theme
says, be a 'Journey of Harmony', bringing friendship and
respect to people of different nationalities, races and
creeds," commented IOC President Rogge. "I have
no doubt the Beijing 2008 Olympic Torch Relay will leave
many extraordinary memories and create new dreams for
people around the world."
    Liu Peng, minister of the State General Administration
of Sport and executive president of BOCOG, also attended
the ceremony. And the ceremony was presided over by Wang
Qishan, mayor of Beijing and executive president of BOCOG.

    The Planned Route
    Validated by IOC, the Olympic Flame will be lit in
Olympia, Greece according to tradition on March 25, 2008.
From March 25 - 30, the Torch Relay will travel across
Greece, ending at the Panathinaiko Stadium, the site of the
first modern Olympic Games in 1896. After the handover
ceremony in the stadium, the Olympic Flame will arrive in
Beijing on March 31, 2008. In Beijing, a ceremony will be
held for the arrival of the flame into China and the
Beijing 2008 Olympic torch relay will commence.

    The cities along the route are:
    Beijing; Almaty; Istanbul; St. Petersburg; London;
Paris; San Francisco; Buenos Aires; Dar Es Salaam; Muscat;
Islamabad; Mumbai; Bangkok; Kuala Lumpur; Jakarta;
Canberra; Nagano; Seoul; Pyongyang; Ho Chi Minh City;
Taipei; Hong Kong; Macao; Hainan Province (Sanya,
Wuzhishan, Wanning, Haikou); Guangdong Province (Guangzhou,
Shenzhen, Huizhou, Shantou); Fujian Province (Fuzhou,
Quanzhou, Xiamen, Longyan); Jiangxi Province (Ruijin,
Jinggangshan, Nanchang); Zhejiang Province (Wenzhou,
Ningbo, Hangzhou, Shaoxing, Jiaxing); Shanghai; Jiangsu
Province (Suzhou, Nantong, Taizhou, Yangzhou, Nanjing);
An'hui Province (Hefei, Huainan, Wuhu, Jixi, Huangshan);
Hubei Province (Wuhan, Yichang, Jingzhou); Hunan Province
(Yueyang, Changsha, Shaoshan); Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous
Region (Guilin, Nanning, Baise); Yunnan Province (Kunming,
Lijiang, Xamgyi' nyilha); Guizhou Province (Guiyang, Kaili,
Zunyi); Chongqing; Sichuang Province (Guang'an, Mianyang,
Guanghan, Leshan, Zigong, Yibin, Chengdu); Tibet Autonomous
Region (Shannan Diqu, Lhasa); Qinghai Province (Golmud,
Qinghai Hu, Xining); Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region
(Urumqi, Kashi, Shihezi, Changji); Gansu Province
(Dunhuang, Jiayuguan, Jiuquan, Tianshui, Lanzhou); Ningxia
Hui Autonomous Region (Zhongwei, Wuzhong, Yinchuan);
Shaanxi Province (Yan'an, Yangling, Xianyang, Xi'an);
Shanxi Province (Yuncheng, Pingyao, Taiyuan, Datong); Inner
Mongolia Autonomous Region (Hohhot, Ordos, Baotou, Chifeng);
Heilongjiang Province (Qiqihar, Daqing, Harbin); Jilin
Province (Songyuan, Changchun, Jilin, Yanji); Liaoning
Province (Shenyang, Benxi, Liaoyang, Anshan, Dalian);
Shandong Province (Yantai, Weihai, Qingdao, Rizhao, Linyi,
Qufu, Tai'an, Jinan); Henan Province (Shangqiu, Kaifeng,
Zhengzhou, Luoyang, Anyang); Hebei Province (Shijiazhuang,
Qinhuangdao, Tangshan); Tianjin; and Beijing.
    One of the highlights of this leg will be the attempt
to bring the Olympic Flame to the highest peak in the world
Mt. Qomolangma. During the arrival ceremony for the flame
into China on March 31, 2008, one of the lanterns with the
Olympic Flame will be kept aside. The torchbearer team will
then attempt to take the Flame to the highest peak on a day
in May that presents the best climatic conditions for the
ascent.

    Design
    The design of the Torch takes advantage of Chinese
artistic heritage and technological expertise. The design
of the aluminum torch features traditional scrolls and the
"Lucky Cloud." It stands 72 centimeters high and
weighs 985 grams.
    The Torch incorporates technological innovations to be
able to remain lit in winds of up to 65 kilometers-an-hour
and lit in rain of up to 50 millimeters-an-hour. And the
torch can keep burning for 15 minutes. Other technological
advancements prevent color discoloration and corrosion
around the cone from which the Flame burns. The Torch
construction is also environmentally-conscious. The
materials are recyclable, and the propane fuel meets
environmental requirements.
    "The Beijing Olympic Torch boasts both distinctive
Chinese cultural features, and technical excellence and
sophisticated materials. It will carry the friendship that
Chinese people extend to the world and the Olympic spirit
to the five continents and to the peak of Mt.
Qomolangma," said BOCOG President Liu Qi.
    "The torch and the Olympic Flame are symbols which
embody the Olympic values of excellence, respect and
friendship. They inspire us to be the best we can be in all
that we do," added IOC President Jacques Rogge.
"The magnificent design of the torch for the Beijing
2008 Olympic Torch Relay will also add a very unique
Chinese flavor to the relay, as the 'Clouds of Promise'
carry the Beijing Games' message to the world."
    The Torch casting was designed by the Lenovo Creative
Center and the burning system inside the Torch was designed
by the China Aerospace Science and Industry Group.

    Beijing 2008 Olympic Torch Relay Worldwide Partners
    The Worldwide Partners for Beijing 2008 Olympic Torch
Relay are: Coca-Cola, Samsung and Lenovo, which will
provide financial and service support for the smooth
operation of the torch relay. They are the highest tier
sponsors of sponsorship program for Beijing 2008 Olympic
Torch Relay and are granted a series of marketing rights
and benefits related to the torch relay.


    For more information, please contact: 

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    Olympic Torch Relay Center
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    OTR@ beijing2008.cn