Jilin relay not just song-and-dance routine

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Because both cities were cradles of the Manchu nationality, theyhighlighted local tradition in their relay celebration.
The relay started at 7 am in Songyuan, which gained municipalstatus in 1992.
Three rivers - the Songhua, the Nenjiang and the Lalin - runthrough the city, which has long been called "an oil city, a grainstore, a meat store, a sea of trees and a place of fish".
Bordering the Inner Mongolia autonomous region and Liaoningprovince, Songyuan is also a major hub for ethnic Mongolians.
In addition to a grand dance performance by 1,000 Manchu gege, thecity's relay ceremony featured a group performance by 2,008Mongolian matouqin (a local two-stringed fiddle) players, aged from10 to 65, setting a new Guinness World Record.
"The matouqin is a unique cultural symbol for us Mongolians,"46-year-old performer Narisu said. "We wish that such traditionalculture would be passed down from generation to generation, justlike the torch's flame is passed from one place to another."