Olympic torch relay to be held in Shenzhen

The Olympic flame relay in China's first special economic zone, Shenzhen, will kick off here Thursday.

A total of 208 torch bearers will run a 41.6-kilometer route, which is expected to take 10.5 hours.

The relay will start from the Shimin Guangchang, or the People's Square, and finish at the western square of the city stadium. It will also pass by landmarks such as the Window of the World, Red Forest Park and the city's highest skyscraper Diwang building.

Shenzhen is a symbol of China's reform and opening up policy. With skyscrapers and modern streets covering the whole city, it is hard to imagine only 30 years ago, it was still one of the poorest villages in the country.

The Window of the World, a tourist sight of the city, has duplicated more than 130 world famous constructions and relics, including the Angkor Wat and the French Eiffel Tower.

The Red Forest Park has a wide collection of world's rare tree species and birds, and the 384-meter-high Diwang Building, when it was built in 1996, represented the highest building in Asia.

The flame will also pass a giant portrait of Deng Xiaoping, the country's great leader, who initiated the reform and opening up policy 30 years ago and established the Shenzhen special economic zone in 1980.