In the end it was all worth it for Filipino Marco Torres and his family. 'As a believer in the Olympic movement and a major sports fan...this a dream come true,' Mr Torres said after completing his 40 metres of fame as an Olympic torch-bearer in the Gansu city of Lanzhou on Monday.
Mr Torres, a Beijing-based senior marketing manager for interior design firm M Moser Associates, was one of eight foreigners chosen in an online competition to run in the relay.
He said security was extremely tight and at one stage family members were questioned by security personnel about why they did not have permits to be on the route and about a Filipino flag in the family's bag.
But, finally, Mr Torres' mother, who had flown in from the United States, his sister from the Philippines and a friend from Beijing were able to take up a prime position and watch him become the first Filipino since 1964 to run with the Olympic flame.
'It just goes to show how safe and secure it was,' he said. 'I am glad that they were able to watch me. I don't think the Philippines will be hosting the Olympics in the next 100 years.
'It was worth all the effort put into it - all the effort in campaigning and patience to wait for it to happen and all the effort 'for family and friends.'