The Olympic torch relay in Fuzhou, the capital city of southeastern China's Fujian province, has successfully concluded.

At the beginning of the ceremony, Zheng Meizhu, a former Olympic volleyball champion, took the torch from a local official, and ran as the first of the 208 torch bearers.

"I'm very excited. It's hard to express in words."

After finishing her leg of the relay, Zheng Meizhu passed the flame to her former teammate Hou Yuzhu, also a proud Olympic volleyball champion.

"I haven't seen a scene like this in many years. The people here have all taken the initiative to come out and celebrate the Olympics. This is quite moving. It shows how great China is."

94-year-old Ou Chunkun, the oldest Beijing Olympic torch bearer, took part in the Fuzhou torch relay as well.

Thousands of spectators witnessed the whole event, many waving national flags and Olympic flags along the route. Some residents performed with traditional Chinese drums and dances during the celebration.

Fuzhou is a famous cultural city on the southeastern coast of China with a history of more than 2,000 years. The city is also well known as the hometown of a particularly large number of overseas Chinese.

The Olympic flame will start its relay on Monday in Quanzhou and Xiamen, which are also known as the home city of millions of overseas Chinese.

It will be the flame's second and third stop in Fujian Province. The relay will cover 20 kilometers with 108 torchbearers in Quanzhou and 17 kilometers with 100 torchbearers in Xiamen.