The Olympic torch was lit at 9:16 AM at the East Gate of the Great Hall of the People in downtown Beijing. The 55.6-kilometer relay through the Chinese capital began with a morning run across Tian'anmen Square.

Yu Zaiqing, vice president of the Chinese Olympic Committee and a member of the International Olympic Committee, was the first to take up the torch in the Beijing relay and China's NBA star Yao Ming will be the last.

The Olympic flame embarked on a 78,000-kilometer (46,800-mile) journey across six continents and 33 cities when it left Greece on June 2. For the first time in history, the flame will visit Africa and South America.

The torch relay returns to Greece on July 9 for the second half of its domestic relay before the start of the August 13 opening of the Summer Olympics.

The Beijing leg will conclude late in the afternoon at the Summer Palace in the northwestern part of the city. At press time, the runners were in the Zhongguancun area of Haidian District, not far from the finish line.

(Xinhua News Agency June 9, 2004)