Kazakhstan president starts the torch relay in Almaty

　　(ALMATY, April 2) -- On April 2, Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev started the Olympic flame relay in Almaty as the first torchbearer.

　　Bakhtiyar Artaev, a boxing gold medalist at the 2004 Athens Olympics, will receive the Olympic torch from Nazarbayev. Zhaksalyk Ushkempirov, a wrestling gold medalist at the 1980 Olympic Games, will be the third torchbearer in Almaty.

　　The Almaty leg of the Olympic torch relay starts at 12:00 p.m., (GMT +6), April 2, and is divided into two phases. After a short break at 2:10 p.m., (GMT +6), the second phase of the torch relay will begin at 3:00 p.m. Zhang Xiyun, the Chinese ambassador to Kazakhstan, will take part in the second phase of the torch relay.