Beijing Leg of 2008 Paralympic Torch Relay Begins Friday

The Beijing leg of the 2008 Paralympic torch relay began at the China Millennium Monument in Beijing this morning, ending tomorrow. The route for the Beijing section of the relay passed on to the Summer Palace and Chaoyang Park. A total of 240 torchbearers will participate in the 12-kilometer relay over two days. The Paralympic torchbearers are representatives from different walks of life at home and abroad, such as farmers, managers of enterprises, teachers, students, athletes, and artists. There are 83 foreigners, 10 from Hong Kong, and 70 torchbearers with disabilities. The flames from the routes of  "modern and ancient China" met in Beijing and jointly lit the cauldron.

China's Paralympic Team Strives for Success and Exchanges with Other Athletes

Athletes from the largest Paralympic delegation in Chinese history will do their best to achieve good results in competition and promote exchanges with athletes from other nations at the upcoming Games. The Chinese delegation consists of 547 people, with 332 athletes. Around 30 percent took part in the last session of the Paralympics while 226 competitors are debutants. The delegation will participate in all 20 sports covering 295 events.

Paralympic Games Gets Live Online TV Coverage

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) announced that the Games will get extensive live coverage online. Viewers can go to ParalympicSport.TV, the IPC's internet TV channel, for live coverage of events, running a minimum of eight hours per day. China's state television China Central Television (CCTV), has also announced plans to broadcast live at least three events a day during the Paralympics, which runs from September 6 to 17. Simultaneous sign-language interpretation will be run with every event to help hearing-impaired people.