2008 Beijing Summer Games Flame

The 2008 Beijing Summer Games Flame was lit at a ceremony at the ancient city of Olympia, amidst protests from Tibetans. Greek actress, Maria Nafpliotou, acted as the chief priestess in the ceremony. According to the tradition, the flame was lit in front of the Temple of Hira. The sun rays are passed through a convex mirror in order to light the flame. The flame will be officially handed over to the organizers on 30th March at Kalimarmaro Stadium in Athens.

However, there were protests held by exiled Tibetans at the venue. As Liu Qi, President of the Beijing Summer Games Committee (BOCOG), was delivering his speech one protestor stood behind him with and displayed a flag. The flag was black in color with handcuffs in place of the Olympic rings. The protestor was quickly whisked away by the security personnel. There were other rounds of protests held by the Reporters Without barriers group.

The 2008 Beijing Summer Games Flame will journey through 20 countries in 130 days, traversing a distance of around 137,000 kilometers. The flame is also scheduled to be carried to Lhasa, the capital of Tibet.

Meanwhile the German Olympic Committee has announced that they would not boycott the Beijing Summer Games in the wake of events taking place in Tibet.