THE selection process for the torchbearers（火炬手） of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games started in Beijing on June 23.
The process is handled by the Beijing Olympic Organizing Committee（北京奥组委）. According to the organizers, the torch relay（火炬接力） will set new records in Olympic history in terms of（在……方面） the number of torchbearers, the duration（持续时间）, and the distance it covers.
The torch relay is one of the most important activities to spread the Olympic spirit. The route（路线） of the Beijing Olympics torch relay was officially released（发布） on April 26. The Olympic torch will reach the world’s highest peak（山峰）, and it will be carried across all the five continents（洲）, along the old “Silk Road”（丝绸之路）, and through 135 cities, for a total of 137,000 kilometers in a 130-day period.
