In Thailand, the sacred flame for the Beijing Olympic Games is in the capital of Bangkok for the 12th leg of its global tour. The torch relay is scheduled to kick off at 3pm local time today. And Thailand's crown princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn has presided over a welcome party for the Beijing Olympic Flame delegation.
The torch relay is scheduled to kick off at 3pm local time today.
The welcome ceremony in Bangkok started with a traditional Chinese "Lion Dance" performance on Friday evening.`
Three hundred guests, including the torchbearers for Thailand's relay, attended the party.
Princess Sirindhorn said she was looking forward to attending the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics on behalf of King Bhumibol Adulyadej. She also said she believed the relay in Bangkok will run smoothly and will be successful.
The Beijing delegation chief, Jiang Xiaoyu, gave the Princess a Lucky Clouds Olympic Torch and thanked her for her support.
Eighty torchbearers, including government officials, athletes, artists, students and Thai-Chinese community leaders, will participate in the over ten-kilometer route of the relay through the city.
Princess Sirindhorn said she was looking forward to attending the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics on behalf of King Bhumibol Adulyadej.
The first torchbearer will be a vice mayor of Bangkok. And the last runner is a female Thai athlete, who was a gold medalist at the 2004 Olympics in Athens. Fifty of the eighty torchbearers are overseas Chinese.
The starting point of the relay will be in Chinatown, where many overseas Chinese live. The torch will then pass Bangkok's landmark sites, including the Grand Palace, the National Monument and Rama the Fifth Square.
The president of Thailand's National Olympic Committee, Yuthasak Sasiprapha, says the Thai authorities will not tolerate any protests aimed at disrupting the Bangkok leg of the torch's global journey.
And he says strict measures will be taken against protesters who disrupt the event.
Bangkok officials estimate more than 30-thousand spectators will show up to witness the first Olympic torch relay on Thai soil.
