Torchbearer of the Tajik ethnic group Wu Tianyi runs with torch during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games torch relay in Xining, northwest China's Qinghai Province, on June 24, 2008. (Xinhua Photo)

The Olympic torch relay kicked off in Xining, capital of northwest China's Qinghai Province, on Tuesday morning in showers.

Thousands of young students and local residents gathered at the Central Square where the relay started up, holding a forest of the five star red flags and flags printed with the Beijing Olympics emblem.

It was still raining one hour before the scheduled starting time. But people were still standing, waiting for the Flame and hailing "Go Olympics, Go China".

The starting ceremony began at 8 a.m. around. The first torchbearer, Wu Tianyi, an ethnic Tajik academician of China Academy of Engineering, received the torch from Wang Jianjun, Party chief of Xining.

Wu began to run at 8:13 a.m. amid cheers. The rain almost stopped at the same time.

Wu has spent nearly thirty years on treating patients with plateau disease and contributed to "zero death" of plateau disease and plague spot during the construction of Qinghai-Tibet Railway.

"I am so proud to be the first torchbearer. I will bring the Olympic Spirits to my work and contribute more to curing plateau disease," he said right before the start-up.

Xining is the last stop of the three-day Qinghai leg. A total of 291 torchbearers will run a distance of 8.8 kilometers in the relay.

(Xinhua)