A Chinese master calligrapher and Beijing Olympic torchbearer said he hoped the country's traditional calligraphy art could spread throughout the world with the Olympic sacred flame.

"I hope the Chinese art could be well accepted and prosper wherever the Olympic flame reaches," said Zhang Hai, Chairman of the Chinese Calligraphers Association.

Zhang run the first leg of the Olympic torch relay in the Luoyang City in the central Henan province. The gray-haired artist waved his hand and raised the torch high.

"The upcoming Beijing Olympic Games is the best chance for the whole world to know the Chinese calligraphy," he said.

"The Olympics in China will amaze the world not only with its high-quality venues, but also the enchanting traditional culture," he added.

Calligraphy, which has remained a potent force in Chinese life up to the present, continued to be a central art of the literati, closely associated both with painting and with the social and cultural life of the educated elite.

Zhang called the Beijing Olympic emblem Chinese Seal a "perfect combination of the Olympic spirit and the traditional Chinese culture".

The emblem artistically incorporates the seal, the Chinese characters and the calligraphy.

"Although only 18 countries and regions attended the 8th International Calligraphic Exhibition that wrapped up days ago, I see a bright future for the art," he said. "More and more countries will attend the exhibition when they understand the beauty of calligraphy in the near future."

(Xinhua News Agency July 27, 2008)