Ｍｙ　Ｔｏｒｃｈ　Ｒｅｌａｙ　Ｒｕｎ

Ｃａｒｏｌ　Ｋｅｉｌ　（Ａｕｓｔｒａｌｉａ）

In October last year I was asked if I was happy to be nominated as a potential runner in the Beijing Olympics torch relay.I could hardly believe my ears and very excitedly said “yes!” When I was subsequently advised that I had been selected to be one of the five BOCOG runners and indeed one of only 80 Australian torch bearers I felt greatly honoured and privileged.

In the lead-up to the Relay the focus turned to security, the route was shortened and the celebrations on the day were compressed into a much shorter timeframe.On the afternoon of the 23rd of April we were given our uniforms and passes and attended a briefing which covered security, pickup arrangements and our duties.We then had an hour before we went to the buffet reception hosted by the Chinese Embassy at Parliament House, where, after a number of speeches a troupe of drummers and dancers from Shaanxi Province put on a splendid performance which was repeated the next day on Stage 88, where the Relay ended.

On the day of the Relay we left home at 7:30am as we were unsure what the traffic would be like as people had been advised to get to work before 8am and there were estimates of more than 200 buses of Chinese students arriving in the early hours.My group of runners (numbers 5-12, I was number 11) had to wait by the edge of Lake Burley Griffin and the atmosphere when we arrived was extraordinary—a sea of waving red flags with some Australian ones interspersed, singing and chanting and a big cheer when we arrived.It was very cold standing around in shorts on a very chilly Canberra morning. We were not allowed to take anything with us and there were no pockets in our uniforms for keys, cameras or the like.We waited for over half an hour for the torch to be rowed across the Lake from its starting point and several of us were interviewed for China TV.All the while the students kept up the flag waving and chanting.

We were called to our bus—shuttle No. 1, and then we were off, dropping each runner at his/her starting point.I was given my torch as I left the bus and was then escorted to the side of the road by a policeman.As Changbin Yu,runner No. 10, a former student at ANU and also a BOCOG nominee, approached I was ushered to the centre of the road and when he arrived I lit my torch from his under the supervision of the Chinese attendant and police.And then I was off, flanked by several policemen and the Chinese attendant.I was so proud to be running and the cheering support from the spectators, my family and friends and the Chinese students, some of whom ran alongside the barricades, was absolutely exhilarating.The smile did not leave my face until mid-afternoon!I ran at a good pace and was even asked to slow down at one point.I was, however, pleased to stop after my 200 or 250m and handover to the next runner.I moved over to the side of the road, my flame was extinguished and my run was then over.It was then a short walk to Stage 88(the finale point) and what would normally take me 10 minutes or so took at least an hour and a half because everyone I passed, going in either direction, wanted to have their photo taken with the torch!And it didnt stop there—all day, unless I was watching performances, people kept coming up to me to be photographed.I have never in my life been so popular!It was a great feeling to have so many people who wanted to hold or just touch the torch and some were so excited that they were able to hold it and have their photo taken. At the finale point the Canberra Branch of the Australia-China Friendship Society ran a series of activities for the spectators—a Chinese Classical Music Ensemble, Chinese tea ceremony, Chinese brush painting demonstration and Chinese lantern making.We were the only community group participating and were very warmly received.

The Canberra Torch Relay was judged a great success and those of us who were runners will always remember the wonderful atmosphere, the extraordinary support of the Chinese students who came from all over Australia and the great feeling of goodwill on the day.It was a great honour and privilege to be part of such a wonderful event.