The Olympic torch was lit at 9:16 AM at the East Gate of the
Great Hall of the People in downtown Beijing. The 55.6-kilometer
relay through the Chinese capital began with a morning run across
Tian'anmen Square.
Yu Zaiqing, vice president of the Chinese Olympic Committee
and a member of the International Olympic Committee, was the first
to take up the torch in the Beijing relay and China's NBA star Yao
Ming will be the last.
The Olympic flame embarked on a 78,000-kilometer (46,800-mile)
journey across six continents and 33 cities when it left Greece on
June 2. For the first time in history, the flame will visit Africa
and South America.
The torch relay returns to Greece on July 9 for the second half of
its domestic relay before the start of the August 13 opening of the
Summer
Olympics.
The Beijing leg will conclude late in the afternoon at the
Summer Palace in the northwestern part of the city. At press time,
the runners were in the Zhongguancun area of Haidian District, not
far from the finish line.
(Xinhua News Agency June 9, 2004)
