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Paris cancels Olympic flame ceremony casting doubt over London‘s 2012 torch tour
Ashling O‘Connor and Charles Bremner in Paris
The international leg of London’s Olympic torch relay in 2012 is in doubt after violent protests turned the global tour into an embarrassing spectacle. As the flame left Paris for San Francisco yesterday after a second day of disruption, the Olympic movement was left to analyse what had gone wrong during an event supposed to promote harmony and peace.
The Beijing torch was extinguished three times in Paris as thousands of human rights protesters turned the relay into a rout, forcing it to end its shortened journey on a bus.
The debacle followed serious clashes between police and pro-Tibet demonstrators during the 31-mile London leg on Sunday that left organisers determined to learn the lessons of a logistical and public relations disaster.
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