Olympics - Everest test for Beijing torch in 2007

A rehearsal for the Olympic flame's first trip to the top of the world's highest mountain will be televised later this year, according to Beijing organisers (BOCOG). The ascent of Mount Everest, known in China by its Tibetan name Qomolangma, will be...

A rehearsal for the Olympic flame's first trip to the top of the world's highest mountain will be televised later this year, according to Beijing organisers (BOCOG).

The ascent of Mount Everest, known in China by its Tibetan name Qomolangma, will be one of the highlights of the torch relay for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

BOCOG have said the flame will go up the mountain from the southern slope in Nepal before descending to the north into Tibet.

Chinese troops invaded the mountainous region of Tibet in 1950 and the country's spiritual leader Dalai Lama has been in exile in northern India since 1959.

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