The latest leg of the global torch relay for the upcoming Beijing Olympic Games is now underway in Pyongyang, the capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The Olympic flame arrived earlier on Monday in the DPRK by plane from South Korea.
Kim Yong Nam (R front), president of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, hands the torch to the first torchbearer Park Tu Ik at the launching ceremony of the Olympic torch relay in Pyongyang, capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, on April 28, 2008. Pyongyang is the 18th leg of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games torch relay. (Xinhua Photo/An Zhiping)
It's the Olympic torch's first-ever run through the DPRK.
A crowd of thousands watched the start of the relay on Monday morning.
The DPRK's top legislator, Kim Yong Nam, presided over the event.
Kim passed the torch to the first runner, Pak Du Ik, who played on the DPRK's 1966 World Cup soccer team that made a historic run to the quarterfinals.
The relay started beneath the large sculpted flame that tops the obelisk of the Juche Tower, a historic landmark in Pyongyang.
The relay is expected to last about five hours. The torch goes to Chongryu bridge, the Friendship Tower, Pyongyang Railway Station, and ends at the Kim Il Sung Stadium on Monday afternoon.
