Olympic Torch Run

[Anchor Lead]

An Olympic torch for next year's Winter Olympic Games in PyeongChang will be lit in Greece on Tuesday. The torch will arrive in South Korea on November first and will be relayed over a route of 2,018 kilometers across the nation by 7,500 carriers, a number that symbolizes the population of the Korean Peninsula.

[Pkg]

The Olympic torch for the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in PyeongChang will be lit in Olympia, Greece, on Tuesday. The flame will be delivered by Greek athletes to the first South Korean torch bearer, soccer star Park Ji-sung. After traveling around Greece, the torch will arrive in South Korea on November 1 and the relay will have 7,500 torch bearers traveling a route of 2,018 kilometers. Those selected as torch bearers expressed excitement, awaiting the moment of honor they will share.

[Soundbite] Kim Beom-young(Torch Bearer) : "I was selected for this huge event. I will do my best to carry the torch in order to leave no regrets."

As astronauts took part in the delivery of the torch for the Sochi Olympic Games, some regions will use distinctive ways to symbolize their local images, such as haenyeo female divers in Jeju and an ox cart in Hwingseong, Gangwon-do Province.

[Soundbite] Lee Sun-young(PyeongChang Olympic Games Organizing Committee) : "The torch relay is aimed at promoting South Korea across the nation and allowing everyone to experience the Olympic Games at anytime and anywhere."

The atmosphere will further heat up, when the torch arrives in Gangwon-do Province on January 21 next year. The final Olympic torch bearer, an honor usually assumed by a figure symbolizing the spirit of the Olympics, will be unveiled on the opening day of the PyeongChang Games.