Olympic Torch First Ever Relay in North Korea
April 28, 2008 by Jeanne Dupuis
Filed under Sports Rumors
The torch for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games made it’s way to North Korea, marking the first time the Olympic symbol was taken to the Asian nation. According to the Associated Press, it was protest-free as it was presided over by the head of the country’s rubber-stamp parliament, Kim Yong Nam, who often acts as a ceremonial state leader.
While the relay has been marred by anti-China demonstrations as the torch has travelled the world, North Korea, a communist ally of China, has openly criticized the violence and vowed to be free of protests. The country’s leader, Kim Jong Il, did not attend the festivities but was “paying great interest to the success of the Olympic torch relay.”
Here’s a video about the relay and the plans to take the torch to the top of Mount Everest.
