Olympic torch lit despite protests

Last Modified: 24 Mar 2008
By: Julian Rush

Tibetan independence protesters have disrupted the first set-piece event of the Beijing Olympic Games, the torch-lighting ceremony at Olympia in Greece.

Despite a heavy police presence in the area, three demonstrators managed to run onto the field in the middle of the ceremony, during a speech by the president of the Beijing organising committee.

The protesters, all from the Paris-based organisation Reporters Without Borders, were arrested.

State television in China did not show the protest, but the protest suggests it will be a long hot summer for the Chinese as the torch makes it way around the world.

The torch will now travel to Beijing before starting its 130-day world tour, and there will be plenty of opportunities for protests in the 20 countries en route, except China itself.

The torch will travel to Mount Everest and even Tibet before touring China to arrive in Beijing on August 8, with Chinese authorities expected to crush any demonstrations as it crosses the country.