By Christine Pirovolakis, dpaAthens - Greece handed over the Olympic flame to China on Sunday amid protests by pro-Tibet demonstrators who attempted to disrupt ceremonies.
"In 130 days the 2008 Beijing Olympics begin. We and the other nations of the world look forward to this moment," said Beijing Games organizing Chief Liu Qi before receiving the flame from Minos Kyriakou, president of the Hellenic Olympic Committee.
Minutes earlier, a small group of pro-Tibetan demonstrators, chanting "Free Tibet" and unfurling a banner which read "Stop the Genocide in Tibet", attempted to disrupt the last leg of the Greek torch relay from the ancient Acropolis to the marble Panathinaikon Stadium, home to the first modern Olympics in 1896.
Police scuffled with the 12 protestors, who were later detained.
Tibetan demonstrators and human rights activists also disrupted the globally televised torch lighting ceremony in ancient Olympia last Monday, after unveiling protest banners condemning China's human rights record during the Beijing organizers' speech.
Hundreds of uniformed and undercover police were deployed along the flame's route and in the Greek capital, in one of the tightest security measures since the torch relay started in 1936.
But despite the tight measures, dozens of other protests, where demonstrators blocked traffic in ancient Olympia and unveiled banners in the northern port city of Thessaloniki and Larissa, marred the Greek leg of the relay as it made its way across 1,528 kilometres over a period of six days.
During the handover ceremony in Athens, Kyriakou called for the flame to be respected during its journey.
"The Olympic flame is the timeless symbol which stirs admiration, pride and faith in the Olympic ideals and values," Kyriakou said as Greek presidential guards and actresses dressed as ancient priestesses looked on.
"I hope the world community welcomes the flame and honours it, showing the same feeling and necessary respect."
More than 9,000 Greek and Chinese spectators inside the stadium watched as Greek triple jumper Hrysopigi Devetzi carried the torch into the stadium lined with Greek and Chinese flags.
"I came here to see the flame and I think that this is an ideal time for Tibetans to be heard," said Igor, a visitor from Croatia.
Heading to the marble stadium to watch the handover ceremony, Michalis Alianis said he was angry that activists were using the flame to voice their concerns.
"They should leave politics outside of the Olympic Games - this is a celebration of peace."
The flame will arrive in China on Monday for the start of a domestic and international relay that will pass through 20 countries. The torch relay culminates in the lighting of the Olympic Cauldron in Beijing's National Stadium at the Opening Ceremony on August 8.
Protestors are angry at China's crushing of the unrest in Tibet earlier this month and its plans to take the torch through Tibet and to the top of Mount Everest.
Tibetan activists accuse Beijing of using the site to convey a false message of harmony in the troubled Himalayan region. Chinese troops have occupied Tibet since 1951.
As the Beijing Games approach, the International Olympic Committee has come under growing criticism from human rights groups in order to pressure China to improve its human rights situation.
Also on Sunday, China tightened security around Monday's arrival of the flame in Beijing and a ceremony at Tiananmen Square, seemingly fearing protests.
The local Olympic organizing committee (BOCOG) cited less space because of "security reasons" when it excluded 24 foreign media organizations, including Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa, from the ceremony despite confirmed accreditations for the event.
Chinese officials have also been tight-lipped about the timetable for the Tiananmen ceremony. The flame arrives Monday aboard an Air China plane from Greece and will be brought downtown by car.
