Torch Relay Update -- Flame Swims Amur River

The Sochi Olympic flame toured two cities in the Amur region on Tuesday:Belogorsk andBlagoveshchensk.

The Amur region is home to the largest cat in the world: the Siberian tiger.

Sochi 2014 says 15 torchbearers ran with the flame through the city of Belogorsk. The city had its own delegate at the 2008BeijingOlympics; Svetlana Klyuka placed fourth in the 800-meter run.

Blagoveshchensk borders China, and lies at the intersection of the Amur and Zeya rivers.In the 1940s, a dinosaur graveyard was discovered under Blagoveshchensk. According to Sochi 2014, the remains of the ancient reptiles are still there now.

More than 70 torchbearers carried the flame throughBlagoveshchensk. Sochi 2014 says nine athletes swam with the flame across the Amur River.

The relay heads west to Chita on Thursday. The line-up of more than 100 torchbearers carrying the flame throughChita will include Russian archerTimur Tuchinov, whotook home a gold medal at the 2012 London Paralympics.

Altogether, 14,000 runners will carry the torch across a total distance of 38,525 miles.The flame is touring 83 towns and cities before heading back into European Russia, and ultimately Sochi, for the 2014 Winter Olympics opening ceremony on February 7.

Written byNicole Bennett

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