The people of Longyan welcome the arrival of the Olympic torch yesterday.- Xinhua/China Daily

The Olympic torch relay passed through this famous city yesterday deep in the mountains of East China's Fujian province, where Mao Zedong and his comrades formed the Red Army under the leadership of the Communist Party of China almost eight decades ago.

Sydney Olympics weight lifting bronze medalist Zhang Xiangxiang kicked off yesterday's 208-runner leg from the People's Square in the heart of Longyan.

"I want to use this chance to show my sympathy and support for the earthquake victims," he told China Daily.

The relay continued into the afternoon through the town of Gutian in suburban Shanghang county, where Mao presided over the historical two-day Gutian Congress in December 1929 and later wrote his famous article entitled "A single spark kindles a prairie fire".

When the torch passed the compound where the congress was held, local farmers showed their support for earthquake victims by toting pieces of red-colored paper on which they wrote in Chinese calligraphy: "Wenchuan, hold on!"

Song Lianhai, who held the paper aloft together with other farmers, explained: "We in the revolutionary base follow the nation's big news closely and we want to show our support for the earthquake victims in Wenchuan."

The relay ended in Changting County of Longyan, where the Red Army started the tragic two-year Long March in October 1934.

The last torchbearer was badminton star Chen Hong, famous for winning the Thomas Cup teams tournament in Jakarta in 2004.

"As a veteran athlete I am very proud to become an Olympic torchbearer in my hometown," he said, two months after marrying a Taiwan woman in Longyan.

At yesterday's closing ceremony, torchbearers, the audience and members of the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad reached into their pockets to help quake victims.

One torchbearer - Li Xinyan, president of the Fujian Longgong Group - donated a whopping 5 million yuan (US$714,000).

Longyan was the last of four cities in Fujian to host the relay after it arrived in the province on Sunday.

It continues today in Ruijin, East China's Jiangxi province, before passing through Jinggangshan tomorrow and the provincial capital of Nanchang on Friday.