Rain fails to dampen torchbearers' spirits in Wanzhou

WANGZHOU, Chongqing: Olympic table tennis champion Kong Linghui kicked off the torch relay in Wanzhou district of southwestern Chongqing municipality yesterday amid heavy rain.

Located within the Three Gorges Reservoir area and about 350 kilometers downstream from downtown Chongqing, Wanzhou is one of the areas to have undergone massive relocation since 1993 to make way for the world's biggest hydropower project.

Around 263,000 local residents have been resettled to other cities and provinces, accounting for about one-fifth of the total displaced when the water level reached 156 meters.