A cross-country skier born in Xinjiang, who was one of the two final torchbearers at the Beijing Winter Olympics opening ceremony on Friday, was not picked because of where she comes from, the International Olympic Committee said on Saturday.
Dinigeer Yilamujiang, from Altay in China's western Xinjiang region, placed the lit torch onto a giant snowflake along with Zhao Jiawen, a 21-year-old biathlete, before it was lifted high above the spectators at Beijing's National Stadium.
The selection of Yilamujiang as one of the final two torchbearers came as many Western nations diplomatically boycotted the Winter Games over China's treatment of Uyghurs and members of other Muslim minority groups in Xinjiang.