Special report:
2008 Olympic
Games
FUZHOU, Southeast China, May 11 (Xinhua) -- The Olympic flame will start its relay on Monday in Quanzhou and Xiamen, the home city of millions of overseas Chinese and a special economic zone in China's southeastern Fujian Province.
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Graphics shows the Beijing Olympic torch will be relayed in Quanzhou, a city in southeast China's Fujian Province, May 12, 2008.(Xinhua/Zhang Liyun)
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It will be the sacred flame's second and third stop
in the Fujian province and the relay will cover 20.35 kilometers with
108torchbearers in Quanzhou and 17.4 kilometers with 100 torchbearers in Xiamen.
The Quanzhou's relay route is going to set off on the
square ofChina Museum for Fujian-Taiwan, pass by Riverside Road, Linzhang Gate,
Jiangbin Sports Park, Dapingshan Tunnel, and end on the square in front of The
Straits Sports Center of Quanzhou City. The flame will leave for Xiamen at 12:00
a.m. on Monday.
The torch relay in Xiamen will start at 14:00 local
time from Xiamen International Conference & Exhibition Center. The relay,
entitled "harmonious route", will go through a number of renowned scenic spot
including Huandao Road, Yanwu Bridge, Gulangyu Island, Yundang Lake, Egret Park,
which highlighted Xiamen's seaside landscape and harmonious living environment.
Quanzhou is known as one of the famous hometowns of
overseas Chinese and the major ancestral homes of the Taiwan compatriots of the
Han nationality. It is one of the 24 renowned historic cities of cultural
significance in the first batch made public by the State Council, and also the
starting point of the ancient "Maritime Silk Route".
Xiamen, located at the southeastern coast of Fujian,
is one of China's five special economic zones, and a rapid developing city in
the province. It has long since enjoyed its soubriquet of the "garden on the
sea", known for its clean air, tidiness and comfortable living environment. In
2004, the city was awarded the "UN Habitat Scroll of Honour" as one of "the best
places to live".
