The first torchbearer of the relay's Jilin leg was Songyuan's first mayor Li Shu, from whom the city's current mayor, Sun Hongzhi, took the flame. Sun said the order of the relay members demonstrated the city's determination to pass on the Olympic spirit and its sense of hope for a better future.

In the afternoon, the relay began beneath a light drizzle in Jilin city. The route mostly snaked along the banks of the Songhua River, from which Jilin got the nickname Jiangcheng (River City).

The city is home to more Manchu than any other in China - 225,000, or about 5 percent of the total.

Today, the torch will travel through Yanji, which has more Koreans than any other city in the country.

By Lin Shujuan

Editor: Liu Fang