Olympic torch to travel by streetcar, bike, horse

Torch bearers for next year's London Olympics will be going to unusual lengths in relaying the torch throughout Britain.

The torch bearers will use bicycles, horses and even streetcars apparently to help ease traffic jams along the way.

The decision was announced by the 2012 Olympic Games organizing committee on Monday.

The relay will start at Land's End, in the southwest, on May 19th and will pass through more than 1,000 municipalities. The route includes several landmarks including Stonehenge, a prehistoric gigantic stone monument.
The last torch bearer will arrive at the main stadium in east London on July 27th for the opening ceremony.

The London Olympic organizers say 95 percent of the population in Britain will be within 16 kilometers of the torch during the relay.

The distance covered will be one tenth of that for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, in which the torch was carried over 5 continents.

After the 2012 Games, the International Olympic Committee will limit the torch relays to domestic routes for security and other reasons.

Monday, November 07, 2011 11:38 +0900 (JST)