The first torchbearer Huo Qinghua of the Wuzhong leg starts the Olympic torch relay on Monday morning, June 30, 2008. [Photo: beijing2008.cn]
The Olympic torch bid farewell to Wuzhong, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, at 10:48 a.m. on Monday with last torchbearer Huang He lighting the cauldron at the Shengyuan Square. The torch will begin its Yinchuan leg, the last stop of Torch Reley in Ningxia, on Tuesday.
Wuzhong is famous for its unique scenery and is home to the country's largest concentration of Hui people.
The 5.6-km-long Wuzhong leg followed the Zhongwei leg that ended on Sunday. Established in 1947, Wuzhong Middle School, the starting point of the relay, is a model school that contributes to local development.
A total of 193 torchbearers, including Zhang Dongguo, who is dedicated to promoting local Qingzhen delicacies, and Li Youdong, head of the Wuzhong Firefighting Team that headed to Wenchuan for quake relief work, participated in the Torch Relay in Wuzhong.
As early as 8 a.m., crowds of local residents flocked to the streets to see the Olympic flame.