(Beijing, April 15) The "Good Luck Beijing" 2008 Beijing Marathon Race is to shoot off at 7:30 a.m. Sunday at Tian'anmen Square. It will follow the route of the Beijing Olympic marathon race, which will end at the National Stadium or the "Bird's Nest".

At a press conference held by the event organizing committee this morning, Li Jinkang, executive president of the organizing committee and director of the venue operation team, and Shen Chunde, vice president of the organizing committee, first deputy director of the venue team and Competition Manager, gave accounts of the preparations made for the event.

According to the organizers, this event, featuring the men's and women's marathons, will start from Tian'anmen Square, through six districts of Xuanwu, Dongcheng, Chongwen, Xicheng, Haidian and Chaoyang, and end at the National Stadium. Compared with the courses of the previous years, this Olympic course is flatter and will be helpful to runners in achieving good results. The route, covering such landmark sights as the Temple of Heaven and Zhengyangmen and commercial areas of Beijing Financial Street and Zhongguancun and across the prestigious Peking University and Tsinghua University, will fully display Beijing's perfect integration of ancient history and modern city views.

A total of 116 athletes and officials from six countries and regions have entered for the event, and the number of the accredited media have reached 1,196.

To make sure of the smooth going of the event, scenic spots such as Tian'anmen Square and the Temple of Heaven Park and campuses of Peking University and Tsinghua University along the course will, by the time of the race, be closed under security check and traffic control.