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2008 Summer Olympics torch relay

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The 2008 Olympic Torch Relay is planned to take place from March 25 to August 8, 2008, prior to the Games of the XXIX Olympiad. Plans for the relay were announced on April 26, 2007, in Beijing, China.[1] The relay, with the theme "Journey of Harmony", will last 130 days and carry the torch 137,000 km (85,100 mi.) - the longest distance of any Olympic torch relay (though most of it is by air). After being lit in Olympia, Greece, the torch will travel to the Panathinaiko Stadium in Athens, and then to Beijing, arriving on March 31. From Beijing, the torch will follow a route passing through six continents. The torch will visit cities on the Silk Road, symbolizing ancient links between China and the rest of the world. The relay will also include an attempt to carry the flame to the top of Mount Everest.[2]

International route

2008 Olympic Torch Relay. The original Taiwan route shown in red.

The announced route will carry the torch through the following locations:

  1. Beijing, People's Republic of China
  2. Almaty, Kazakhstan
  3. Istanbul, Turkey
  4. St.Petersburg, Russia
  5. London, United Kingdom
  6. Paris, France
  7. San Francisco, USA
  8. Buenos Aires, Argentina
  9. Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
  10. Muscat, Oman
  11. Islamabad, Pakistan
  12. Mumbai, India
  13. Bangkok, Thailand
  14. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
  15. Jakarta, Indonesia
  16. Canberra, Australia
  17. Nagano, Japan
  18. Seoul, South Korea
  19. Pyongyang, North Korea
  20. Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
  21. Hong Kong, People's Republic of China
  22. Macau, People's Republic of China

The planned route originally included a stop in Taipei between Ho Chi Minh City and Hong Kong, however, the government of the Republic of China on Taiwan has rejected this proposal. The Beijing Organizing Committee has stated that negotiations on the issue will continue.[3]

As of 2007-09-12, negotiations had broken down, as Beijing insisted that neither the flag or the anthem of the Republic of China should appear in the 24-km torch route in Taiwan. [1]

As of 2007-09-21, after the midnight deadline for concluding the negotiations on September 20, Taiwan and Mainland China were unable to come to terms with the issue of the Torch Relay. Conclusively, both sides of the Taiwan Strait decided that the Taipei leg is to be removed. [2]

Mainland China route

2008 Torch Relay mainland China route.

After arriving in mainland China, the relay will travel through the following provinces and cities:

  1. Hainan Province (Sanya, Wuzhishan, Wanning, Haikou)
  2. Guangdong Province (Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Huizhou, Shantou)
  3. Fujian Province (Fuzhou, Quanzhou, Xiamen, Longyan)
  4. Jiangxi Province (Ruijin, Jinggangshan, Nanchang)
  5. Zhejiang Province (Wenzhou Ningbo, Hangzhou, Shaoxing, Jiaxing)
  6. Shanghai
  7. Jiangsu Province (Suzhou, Nantong, Taizhou, Yangzhou, Nanjing)
  8. Anhui Province (Hefei, Huainan, Wuhu, Jixi, Huangshan)
  9. Hubei Province (Wuhan, Yichang, Jingzhou)
  10. Hunan Province (Yueyang, Changsha, Shaoshan)
  11. Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (Guilin, Nanning, Baise)
  12. Yunnan Province (Kunming, Lijiang, Xamgyi'nyilha)
  13. Guizhou Province (Guiyang, Kaili, Zunyi)
  14. Chongqing
  15. Sichuan Province (Guang'an, Mianyang, Guanghan, Leshan, Zigong, Yibin, Chengdu)
  16. Tibet Autonomous Region (Shannan Diqu, Lhasa)
  17. Qinghai Province (Golmud, Qinghai Hu, Xining)
  18. Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (Ürümqi, Kashi, Shihezi, Changji)
  19. Gansu Province (Dunhuang, Jiayuguan, Jiuquan, Tianshui, Lanzhou)
  20. Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region (Zhongwei, Wuzhong, Yinchuan)
  21. Shaanxi Province (Yan'an, Yangling, Xianyang, Xi'an)
  22. Shanxi Province (Yuncheng, Pingyao, Taiyuan, Datong)
  23. Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region (Hohhot, Ordos, Baotou, Chifeng)
  24. Heilongjiang Province (Qiqihar, Daqing, Harbin)
  25. Jilin Province (Songyuan, Changchun, Jilin, Yanji)
  26. Liaoning Province (Shenyang, Benxi, Liaoyang, Anshan, Dalian)
  27. Shandong Province (Yantai, Weihai, Qingdao, Rizhao, Linyi, Qufu, Tai'an, Jinan)
  28. Henan Province (Shangqiu, Kaifeng, Zhengzhou, Luoyang, Anyang)
  29. Hebei Province (Shijiazhuang, Qinhuangdao, Tangshan)
  30. Tianjin
  31. Beijing

Note: Due to the dispute over China's occupation of Tibet, the planned stop there is controversial.[4]

The Torch

The Olympic Torch is based on traditional scrolls and uses a traditional Chinese design known as "Lucky Cloud". The torch is designed to remain lit in 65 kilometer-an-hour winds, and in rain of up to 50 millimeters-an-hour. It is designed by a team from Lenovo Group.

The Torch is designed in reference to the traditional Chinese concept of the 5 elements that make up the entire universe. The 5 elements include: Metal, Wood, Water, Fire and Earth.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Beijing 2008: BOCOG Announces Olympic Torch Relay Route". International Olympic Committee. 2007-04-26. Retrieved 2007-04-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. ^ "Beijing 2008 Olympic Torch Relay Planned Route and Torch Design unveiled". BOCOG. 2007-04-26. Retrieved 2007-04-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ^ "Taiwan rejects China's torch relay plans". USA Today. 2007-04-26. Retrieved 2007-04-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ "Controversy flares over Olympic torch route to Taiwan, Tibet". Agence France-Presse. 2007-04-27. Retrieved 2007-11-28. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
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