FOLLOWING the chaotic scenes of the Beijing 2008 torch relay in London and elsewhere, organisers of the capital’s games are considering running a nationwide only route for 2012.
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Demonstrators protesting against the People’s Republic’s human rights record in Tibet and elsewhere in China have ensured that the relay has become less about sport and more about politics. Both ministers and London 2102 organisers fear similar protests could become the focus of a worldwide relay in four years.
“It is too early to say,” Keith Mills, London 2012 deputy chairman, said on Monday (14 April 2008). “We are committed to a relay domestically and it will definitely go around the regions.
“But it (running worldwide) has not been ruled out or ruled in. It is something we will have to discuss with the International Olympic Committee.”
“No decision has been made,” said Tessa Jowell, Minister for London and the Olympics. “This is something that will be the subject of very careful consideration over the next four years. We do not have to make a decision until after the dust has settled over Beijing.”
