Beijing Olympic Games

Updated：2008-04-04

(LONDON, April 4) – On Thursday, the London leg of the relay route for the 2008 Olympic torch was revealed. According to the plan, torchbearers will carry the sacred flame for a total of 31 miles (approximately 50 kilometers) through the city, the longest relay route outside of mainland China. It is expected that British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Her Royal Highness Princess Anne will be among the fans watching the torch relay.

At the press conference, the British local government and British Olympic Association (BOA) provided details about the London leg of the global route. The sacred flame is scheduled to arrive in the capital city on Saturday night to begin its tour on Sunday morning. The BOA selected the only English athlete to take home the gold five times in consecutive Olympic Games to run the first leg of the relay; at 10:30 a.m. on April 6, rower Steve Redgrave will start off from the site of the 1948 Summer Olympics, Wembly Square.

Other torchbearers include Paralympics and Olympic athletes, celebrities, and middle school students.

At London’s famous Downing Street, prime minister Gordon Brown will greet torchbearer Ali Jawad, an athlete with a disability.

After passing through the hands of 80 torchbearers, the sacred flame will arrive at Peninsula Square around 6:00 p.m., where the last torchbearer, Dame Kelly Holmes, who won gold medals in the 800m and 1500m running events at the 2004 Games, will light the waiting cauldron.

British fans will acknowledge the sacred flame’s journey through the city with celebrations that incorporate “Chinese elements,” including dragon dances and artistic performances.

The route is to pass through important London sites, including Hyde Park Place, Oxford Circus, the British Museum, Chinatown, Trafalgar Square, Downing Street, Waterloo Bridge, and St Paul’s Cathedral, not only through traditional means, but also via bicycle, double-decker bus, and yacht.

From London, the sacred flame will head to Paris.