Olympic flame arrives in Beijing ahead of world relay
The famous symbol of the Olympics arrived in Beijing ahead of August's Games
Monday, 31, Mar 2008 12:52
An aeroplane delivering the Olympic flame to Beijing from Athens has touched down in China ahead of the round-the-world relay, which begins tomorrow.
A welcome ceremony for the torch has been held in Tiananmen Square this morning to celebrate its arrival in the 2008 host city.
On Tuesday the Olympic flame will begin its 130-day global relay, starting with a leg from the Chinese capital to the Kazakhstani city of Almaty.
The lantern containing the flame was carried from the Air China aircraft by the Beijing Games' chief organiser Liu Qi and handed to China's 110m hurdles champion from the 2004 Olympics, Liu Xiang.
Xiang then took the torch from Beijing Capital International Airport to Tiananmen Square, where a televised ceremony was held.
Chinese president Hu Jintao was present, along with a number of other high-profile guests, to witness the torch beginning its 85,000-mile journey around the world - which is set to be the longest of its kind in history.
The flame is due to arrive in London on April 6th.
Security was strict in Beijing amid fears that anti-Chinese protestors, angry at the country's policies and actions in relation to neighbouring Tibet, would stage demonstrations similar to those seen at the lighting ceremony in Greece last week.