OLYMPICS/ Spotlight
No flicker of doubt as torch scales Qomolongma
By Yu Yilei (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-09-21 11:14
The Olympic torch has touched the top of Mt Qomolangma, known as Mt Everest in the West, and the dress rehearsal for next year's Beijing Games torch relay route proceeded without any hitches, according to Wang Yongfeng, captain of China's national mountaineering team.
The torch was taken to the world's highest peak four months ago to see what was needed for the TV broadcasting team to safely accompany it next year.
Wang Yongfeng, captain of China's national mountaineering team |
"I can say the rehearsal in May was very successful, even down to the smallest details," Wang said during a partnership signing ceremony between local IT powerhouse Lenovo and the Chinese Mountaineering Association on Wednesday.
The team will set up a sub-headquarters some 6,500m above sea level on one of the slopes of the revered mountain, he said.
This will essentially work as a frontline think tank to help instruct and guide the torch bearers to the summit with further help from Beijing headquarters.
With weather conditions in the area notoriously unpredictable, the team will have a month-long window in May to make their way to the top.
The flame they take with them will be a "clone," or offshoot, of the original. When the original torch first arrives in Beijing from previous co-host Athens, a second torch will be lit and flown to Lhasa to wait for an opportune time to scale Qomolongma. The clone will then be returned to Lhasa to reconnect with the original after the latter has circumnavigated the globe.
To help ensure the mountain section of the torch relay goes smoothly, an information center will be established at 5,000m and a media center at 4,000m. Qomolongma towers 8,848m above sea level.
Lenovo, one of the three worldwide partners of the relay and the designer of the torch, donated a package of specially-designed products including servers, laptops, printers and flash disks to equip the information center, which is expected to be completed before the end of February next year.
The company promised that the products will work smoothly after they were tested in conditions simulating the freezing temperatures, snow storms and low air pressure of the region.
The products will get another test soon when they are hauled up Yuzhu Peak, at 6,178m the highest peak of Kunlun Mountain in Qinghai Province.
"I feel a lot of pressure before we test these products," said Lan Ye, vice-president of Lenovo Group. 'But I have faith in them."
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