Paralympic torch sets off Beijing relay in highlights
5/9/2008 17:51
The Paralympic torch relay came to its penultimate stop in Haidian
District in Beijing today, counting down the opening of the Paralympic Games to
one day.
The host city relay of the Paralympics was arranged in two symbol
sites, the China Millenium Monument and the Summer Palace, marking the splendor
of modern and ancient Beijing.
The relay started at 8:30 a.m. as the first 43
torchbearers passed the torch hand to hand in a 1.4km distance around the
Monument.
Then the relay was moved to the Summer Palace 11 kilometers away
for follow-up bearers. The torchbearers in No. 44 to 85 carried on the relay
around the Kunming Lake in the former royal garden.
From No. 86 to 115, the
relay was presented in a dragon boat on the Lake until the last five finished
intraday journey on the Lake's bank at 10:20 a.m..
The Summer Palace,
literally "Gardens of Nurtured Harmony", is a royal palace in China's Qing
dynasty. The Palace is mainly dominated by Longevity Hill (60 meters high) and
the Kunming Lake. It covers an expanse of 2.9 square kilometers, three quarters
of which is water. The central Kunming Lake covering 2.2 square kilometers was
entirely man made and the excavated soil was used to build Longevity
Hill.
Paralympic athlete Wang Juan, 33, was the first one carrying the torch.
Wang was the women's 100m and 200m bronze medallist at the Sydney Paralympics.
She had broke the world record nine times.
Wang passed the torch to Sam
Sullivan, mayor of Vancouver, the host city of next Winter Olympics. Sam is a
good example of success for the disabled. He is the only mayor paralyzed in legs
and arms in Canada.
A bunch of officials and staff from IPC (International
Paralympic Committee) took part in the relay including IPC president Philip
Craven, IPC vice president Miguel Sagarra Gadea, IPC senior manager of marketing
Rudi Van den Abbeele, IPC president of Education Committee Anne Cody, IPC
Executive Officer of Sports and International Relations.
"The Paralympic
torch relay is fantastic and penetrating. It's showing us a festival, not only
for the special group and for the whole world, for human kind," said Craven, who
passed his the torch to his personal assistant Diana Taylor.
"I have
confidence for the Paralympic Games in Beijing. It will definitely be a great
success like the Olympic Games have been."
Zhou Ye, 45, was entitled to light
the cauldron. Zhou is the headmaster of Special Education School in Dongcheng
District of Beijing. She has been working on special education for 25 years and
won the title of "Top Ten Youths in Beijing".
"As a teacher and manager on
special education, I really hope the world can give more and more attention to
the special group," said Zhou.
"I'm so pleased to see that's what happening
in China. Cares and concerns are flowing to the disabled in China and more and
more people are generous to them."
The last relay tomorrow will be staged in
Chaoyang Park prior to the lighting of cauldron in the National Stadium for the
opening ceremony.
Xinhua
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