Simplicity to Mark Torch Relay
Beijing 2008 will run quieter torch relays from tomorrow, out of respect to the victims of the Sichuan earthquake.
Road damage in Sichuan province means some people are evacuating on foot. (Xinhua)"We will reduce the scope of the torch relay. We will simplify the procedures. We will focus on simplicity," organizing committee spokesman Sun Weide said on May 13.
His announcement reverses an earlier plan to run an unchanged relay.
BOCOG will likely run the scaled-back relays until the torch finishes its June 15 to 18 circuit of Sichuan province. But the timeframe ultimately depends on disaster relief work, Sun said.
When the torch relay begins May 14 in Ruijin in southeast China, BOCOG will collect donations for disaster relief.
The Olympic torch is scheduled to make a circuit in Sichuan between June 15 and 18, in cities to the south and east of the quake epicenter. It will come closest to the epicenter when it stops in provincial capital Chengdu on the last day in the province. Chengdu is 150 km southeast of the epicenter and the scene of aftershocks, but only minor damage.
The city's international airport was closed to commercial flights overnight, state media report, due to damage. Mobile phone service was disrupted, and many buildings were evacuated while inspectors searched for serious damage.
Major highways and roads around Chengdu have been reopened, according to state media, but many roads leading toward the epicenter remain closed.
A defense ministry official quoted in Xinhua Reports says 50,000 Chinese army and police personnel are being dispatched to the province to help with relief efforts.
Latest estimates 24 hours after the quake says the death toll had passed 12,000, with many more injuries and more than 9,400 people buried in debris.
IOC Sends Donations, Sympathy
The International The torch relay proceeded through the city of Longyan in southeast China on May 13. (Getty Images)Olympic Committee will contribute $1 million to earthquake relief efforts in China, according to a May 13 announcement.
The funds will be channeled through BOCOG. The announcement comes after IOC president Jacques Rogge sent a letter of concern and condolence to Chinese president Hu Jintao in the hours after the quake.
"We send our deepest felt condolences for the victims. The Olympic Movement is at your side, especially during these difficult moments. Our thoughts are with you," reads the letter.
Rogge wrote the letter on Monday morning, as news of the quake reached Europe. Later in the day, he commented on the scale of the tragedy.
"This appears to be a major disaster, the scale of which is only just becoming apparent. I feel deeply for those affected and join in solidarity with the people of China," he said.
Beijing 2008 added its condolences during a regular press conference the day after the quake.
"BOCOG grieves for the people who suffered in the earthquake," says media center director Li Zhanjun.
The leaders of the archery and taekwondo federations also posted notes of condolence on their webpages.
Beijing Olympic Venues Safe The Water Cube in Beijing was designed and built to withstand a magnitude 8 earthquake, according to a state media report. (ATR)
Games venues in Beijing are free of quake damage because of sound construction, says a builder.
"Each step from designing to construction was under strictly quality controls and the earthquake didn't harm the stadium," Xinhua quotes Tan Xiaochun, attributed as the executive in charge of Olympic venue construction.
The venues were designed to withstand earthquakes, the report continues.
Written by Maggie Lee
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