Chinese mountaineers display the Olympic flame lanterns after they returned to the Base Camp of Mt. Qomolangma, May 9, 2008. [Xinhua]

The Beijing Olympics torch relay is the longest and most ambitious ever planned, traveling 137,000 kilometers across five continents in 130 days. One of the highlights in its global journey is the ascent of the world's highest mountain which spans Nepal and southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region.

The peak is respected as "Mother Goddess" by the Tibetan minority. It is known to westerners as Mount Everest.

The Chinese Mountaineering Team has scaled Mount Qomolangma successfully for more than ten times since 1960.

According to a scientific measurement in 2005, the altitude of Mount Qomolangma is 8844.43 meters, 3.70 meters lower than the figure obtained in 1975.