Chinese climbers, including Tibetans, took the Olympic flame to the top of Mount Everest in a spectacular feat to underscore the nation's ambitions for the August Games.
People across the country watched live television footage of the flame being held atop the world's highest peak.
The highlight came just after 9am yesterday following an eight-hour trek from a camp at 8,300 metres and a final relay run that began with Tibetan climber Jiji, who dedicated her efforts to her husband who died in a mountaineering expedition in Pakistan three years ago.
'He once told me he wanted nothing more than a chance to bring this Olympic flame to the peak of Mount Everest. I think he has done this, since his spirit has always been alive in my body,' Jiji said before the ascent.
The decision to allocate the first leg at the summit to 39-year-old Jiji was symbolic and appeared designed to calm critics from pro-Tibet independence forces, particularly since the March riots and protests.
Ethnic Han mountaineer Wang Yongfeng accepted the flame from Jiji to present an image of harmony, and other mountaineers were also seen cheerfully holding and passing torches around at the summit.