Liu Xiang holds the Universiade torch at yesterday s ceremony in Shenzhen.
A nationwide selection of the 900 torchbearers for Shenzhen Universiade kicked off yesterday at Shenzhen University.
College students are invited to log on to www.iCoke.cn to apply to be torchbearers for the Games, which are due to open in Shenzhen on Aug. 12.
Being a torchbearer for an international sporting event will be an unforgettable experience, said Liu Xiang, China s world champion hurdler, at yesterday s launching ceremony.
Liu was chosen by Coca-Cola, the sponsor of the torchbearing selection, to take on an ambassadorial role in supporting the campaign.
Liu won his first world championship title at the 2001 Universiade in Beijing.
College students are also invited to compete to be Universiade journalists and venue staff, according to Tina Yiu, the Coca-Cola Franchise s general manager of eastern, central and southern China.
Coca-Cola will select 30 student journalists and recruit 500 to serve at the Games.
The Universiade torch is expected to be lit at the prestigious Qinghua University in Beijing in April.
The organizers are considering shortening the torch relay route, which was formerly scheduled to cover 50 universities, and holding an online relay at the same time to hold an economical Universiade, in the name of sustainability.
In another development, the venue for the closing ceremony will reportedly be held at Window of the World in Nanshan District.
However, no official confirmation of the venue change had been made by the organizers by press time.
(By Li Hao)
