Hong Kong held a ceremony on Wednesday to welcome the sacred flame of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, which arrived here in the afternoon.

Hong Kong holds a ceremony Wednesday to welcome the sacred flame of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, which arrived here this afternoon.

Speaking at the ceremony, Executive Vice President of the Beijing Olympic Organizing Committee Yang Shu'an said that after some 30 days of relay, the sacred flame of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games eventually arrived in Hong Kong, back to the motherland. Everyone is expecting successful relay of the Olympic torch in the city with great excitement and anticipation.

Yang said that the relay of Olympic torch is an important part of Beijing Olympic Games and he hoped this will bring peace, friendship and advancement of Olympic spirit to Hong Kong, sharing the joy and glory of the Olympic Games with members of the public in the city.

Yang also said that Olympic Games is a pageant for all athletes and people from all over the world. Today is the 100-day countdown of the Beijing Olympic Games, which will welcome friends worldwide and to serve everyone with the greatest enthusiasm and a cordial heart.

Hong Kong Chief Secretary for Administration Henry Tang said that the respect of, and commitment to, the values of the sacred flame underscores the responsibility of each torch relay city to ensure the dignified, smooth and orderly progress of the Olympic flame.

"Hong Kong is honored to be one of the 134 relay cities. We are immensely proud to be the first Chinese city to welcome the torch after its global journey," he added.

The Olympic torch relay will kick off on May 2 at Hong Kong Cultural Center at Tsim Sha Tsui. A total of 120 torchbearers will take part in the relay which will showcase special landmarks such as Tsing Ma Bridge and Shatin racecourse. It will end at Golden Bauhinia Square in Wanchai.

Following Hong Kong, Macao will be next leg of the torch relay.

Hong Kong holds a ceremony Wednesday to welcome the sacred flame of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, which arrived here this afternoon.

(Xinhua News Agency May 1, 2008)