Olympic torch heads off on world tour
Posted: 01 April 2008 1125 hrs

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BEIJING: The Olympic torch headed for Kazakhstan on Tuesday for the first leg of an epic world tour designed to drum up enthusiasm for the Beijing Games but also certain to draw more protests.

A chartered Air China plane took off about 10:00 am (0200 GMT) to carry the torch from Beijing to Almaty in Kazakhstan, where the first leg of the relay will be run on Wednesday, a Beijing Olympic organising committee official said.

"The torch took off as planned," said an official who asked not to be named.

Dubbed the "journey of harmony," the relay is the longest ever, lasting 130 days and covering 137,000 kilometres (85,000 miles).

Almaty is the first stop on the international route that includes 19 countries during the month of April.

The torch returns to China on May 4 for a three-month tour of the country with a highlight an ascent of Mount Everest in the first part of May. - AFP/ac