Beijing leg of 2008 Paralympic torch relay begins September 5
Beijing leg of 2008 Paralympic torch relay begins September 5
Updated：2008-09-04 21:07:13
(BEIJING, September 4) -- The Beijing leg of the 2008 Paralympic torch relay will begin at the China Millennium Monument in Beijing on the morning of September 5 and end on September 6, says Sun Xuicai, vice-director of Beijing Sports Bureau.
The route for the Beijing section of the torch relay will pass through the China Millennium Monument, the Summer Palace and Chaoyang Park. A total of 240 torchbearers will participate in the 12-kilometer relay over two days, with each torchbearer covering about 50 meters. A 15-minute ceremony will be held at the beginning of each day's relay, and on September 6 there will be a 30-minute closing ceremony.
These Beijing Paralympic torchbearers are representatives from different walks of life at home and abroad, such as farmers, managing staff from enterprises, scientists, medical workers, teachers and students, athletes, artists and performers, with 83 foreign participants and 10 from Hong Kong, including 70 torchbearers with disabilities.
The first day's relay will begin with a short speech by Beijing mayor Guo Jinlong and a ceremony at the China Millennium Monument at 8:15 a.m. local time (UTC/GMT +8). Then the flames from the two routes of "modern China" and "ancient China" will meet and jointly light the cauldron. The first torch of the Beijing leg will be lit from the cauldron and BOCOG president Liu Qi will pass it to the first torchbearer of the day, Wang Juan. Wang is a Paralympic athlete from the Beijing Sports and Vocational Training Center for the Disabled. Forty-three torch bearers will complete the relay in and around the monument.
At the Summer Palace, 77 torch bearers will take part in the relay, 30 passing the torch on the waters of Kunming Lake and 47 on land. The boat that carries the torch will travel in a "Z" pattern, resembling the Chinese character on the Beijing Paralympic emblem. There will be 300 boats mostly for spectators, including visitors with disabilities. The first day's torch relay will end with a 30-minute ceremony at the Bafang pavilion square at 11:00 a.m. local time.
The torch relay on September 6 will start at the Fireworks Square in Chaoyang Park with a ceremony at 9:00 am. Xu Yuansheng, a coach with the China Administration of Sports for Persons with Disabilities, will be the first torchbearer of the day. About 120 torch bearers will participate on the second day, including 40 participants with disabilities. The 5.5-kilometer, 2-hour torch relay will end at about 11:00 a.m.
Beijing Sports Bureau vice-director Sun says the route of the Beijing leg fully represents the theme of "Transcendence, Integration, and Sharing," and displays the grandeur of ancient and modern Chinese cultures through the three locations selected for the torch relay in Beijing.
Updated：2008-09-04 21:07:13
(BEIJING, September 4) -- The Beijing leg of the 2008 Paralympic torch relay will begin at the China Millennium Monument in Beijing on the morning of September 5 and end on September 6, says Sun Xuicai, vice-director of Beijing Sports Bureau.
The route for the Beijing section of the torch relay will pass through the China Millennium Monument, the Summer Palace and Chaoyang Park. A total of 240 torchbearers will participate in the 12-kilometer relay over two days, with each torchbearer covering about 50 meters. A 15-minute ceremony will be held at the beginning of each day's relay, and on September 6 there will be a 30-minute closing ceremony.
These Beijing Paralympic torchbearers are representatives from different walks of life at home and abroad, such as farmers, managing staff from enterprises, scientists, medical workers, teachers and students, athletes, artists and performers, with 83 foreign participants and 10 from Hong Kong, including 70 torchbearers with disabilities.
The first day's relay will begin with a short speech by Beijing mayor Guo Jinlong and a ceremony at the China Millennium Monument at 8:15 a.m. local time (UTC/GMT +8). Then the flames from the two routes of "modern China" and "ancient China" will meet and jointly light the cauldron. The first torch of the Beijing leg will be lit from the cauldron and BOCOG president Liu Qi will pass it to the first torchbearer of the day, Wang Juan. Wang is a Paralympic athlete from the Beijing Sports and Vocational Training Center for the Disabled. Forty-three torch bearers will complete the relay in and around the monument.
At the Summer Palace, 77 torch bearers will take part in the relay, 30 passing the torch on the waters of Kunming Lake and 47 on land. The boat that carries the torch will travel in a "Z" pattern, resembling the Chinese character on the Beijing Paralympic emblem. There will be 300 boats mostly for spectators, including visitors with disabilities. The first day's torch relay will end with a 30-minute ceremony at the Bafang pavilion square at 11:00 a.m. local time.
The torch relay on September 6 will start at the Fireworks Square in Chaoyang Park with a ceremony at 9:00 am. Xu Yuansheng, a coach with the China Administration of Sports for Persons with Disabilities, will be the first torchbearer of the day. About 120 torch bearers will participate on the second day, including 40 participants with disabilities. The 5.5-kilometer, 2-hour torch relay will end at about 11:00 a.m.
Beijing Sports Bureau vice-director Sun says the route of the Beijing leg fully represents the theme of "Transcendence, Integration, and Sharing," and displays the grandeur of ancient and modern Chinese cultures through the three locations selected for the torch relay in Beijing.