The torch relay for the 15th National Games of China will begin on Sunday, with Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hong Kong and Macao hosting simultaneous relay events, organisers announced on Monday.
According to Tang Guohua, deputy director of the Guangdong division’s organising committee, the relay will involve 200 torchbearers in total, with 50 running in each city. Every runner will cover a distance of 50 to 100 meters under the theme of “green, shared, open and clean games.”
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The main launch ceremony will be held at Lianhuashan Park in Shenzhen at 9 am, with parallel starts in Hong Kong, Macao and Guangzhou at 9:30 am. The four routes will converge at the Guangdong Olympic Sports Center around 5 pm, where the merging flame will connect to the main cauldron lighting during the Games’ opening ceremony on 9 November.
Each city’s route has been designed to showcase its local character. In Guangzhou, torchbearers will pass both historic landmarks, such as Zhenhai Tower and the Ming Dynasty city wall, and modern sites, including Ersha Island and Haixinsha Asian Games Park. Shenzhen’s segment will feature a “land-air-combined” format that incorporates low-altitude flight elements, symbolising the city’s technological innovations.
For Hong Kong, the event marks the city’s first time co-hosting a national sports event. The relay will begin at the Central Government Offices in Tamar and end at the Kai Tak Sports Park, passing Victoria Harbour landmarks such as Golden Bauhinia Square and the Hong Kong Cultural Centre.
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In Macao, the 2.6-kilometre route will run from the government headquarters to the Ruins of St. Paul’s. Pun Weng-kun, head of the Macao coordination office, said the event would highlight the city’s multicultural heritage.
This year marks the first time the National Games are jointly hosted by Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao. China Daily reported that the source flame was created from flammable ice collected from the Haima cold seep in the South China Sea, a world first.
Tang said the simultaneous torch relays will symbolise the unity and dynamism of the Greater Bay Area. “By linking the four cities on the same day, we will showcase the region’s integration and shared spirit of progress,” he said.
