The plane carrying the Beijing Olympic flame landed at 23:5 pm on April 28 at Tan Son Nhat International Airport of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, for today’s torch relay through the heart of the city.

The flame arrived in Vietnam from Pyongyang, capital of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, after six hours’ flight. This is the 19th leg of the Beijing Olympic torch relay around the world, and also the first time for Vietnam to host an Olympic torch relay.

Hoang Vinh Giang, vice chairman and general secretary of the Vietnam Olympic Committee and Chinese Ambassador to Vietnam Hu Qianwen walked up the plane to welcome the Flame.

The flame was also welcomed by representatives of the city’s Department for Physical Training and Sports, staff of the Chinese embassy and many journalists.

This afternoon, the torch will be carried from the City Theatre via downtown streets to the Military Zone 7 Competition Hall, where the official torch relay ceremony will take place.

This is the final international stop of the Olympic flame on a relay. After completing the Ho Chi Minh City torch relay, the Flame will head for Hong Kong.

(Source: ND)