PREMIER Wen Jiabao lit the Beijing Paralympic flame at the ancient Temple of Heaven in Beijing on Thursday, kicking off the torch relay across China before the 13th Paralympics open Sept. 6.
In front of the symbolic Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest, hearing-impaired torch holder Jiang Xintian lit the flame from a concave, burnished mirror.
The flame was then handed to a girl in a wheelchair, before it lit a torch held by Liu Qi, president of the organizing committee of the just concluded Beijing Olympic Games.
Liu passed the torch to Wen Jiabao, who lit a cauldron and announced the beginning of the nine-day relay.
The sacred flame will travel to Xi抋n in Northwest China and Shenzhen in the south, where the relay will be launched Friday and Saturday respectively.
“The flame will symbolize over the next 10 days the unique sporting spirit displayed by Paralympic athletes,”said Philip Craven, president of the International Paralympic Committee, at the lighting ceremony. “This spirit overcomes many obstacles in the search for sporting excellence.”
A total of 850 torchbearers will participate in the relays along two routes through 11 Chinese provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities.
“We will try our best to prepare for the Paralympic Games and serve the athletes, coaches and guests,”said Liu. “The Beijing 2008 Paralympics will be a unique high-quality Games.”
About 4,000 disabled athletes from around the world will compete in the Sept. 6-17 Games.(Xinhua)
The Paralympics continues the great Olympic spirit and also bears the dream of 650 million disabled in the world, said Deng Pufang, BOCOG executive president and chairman of the China Disabled Persons Federation.
“The torch relay will show the world the consistent efforts a vigorous country with rich heritage has made to promote a harmonious and beautiful world and mutual respect for human beings,”he said.
(Xinhua)