China has begun paving a highway to the Everest base camp in Tibet to make the trip to the world's highest mountain easier for the Olympic torch relay in 2008.
The new road will upgrade a rough 108 km track to the camp, taking about four months to complete, state media said.
The route will also boost tourism to the base camp area, which is 5,200 metres above sea level, the official Xinhua news agency said.
Organisers of next year's Beijing Olympics are planning to include the summit of Mount Everest in the 130-day torch relay leading up to the games.
They say the relay, covering some 137,000 km, will be the longest ever in Olympic history.
However, the decision to include Tibet in the torch relay has angered opponents of Chinese rule in the Himalayan territory.
They say the torch route is a way of underscoring and legitimising what they argue is China's occupation of Tibet.
In April, China deported five American tourists after they demonstrated for a free Tibet and protested against the games at the base of Mount Everest.
Under the plans for the relay, the torch will begin its journey in Beijing on March 31 next year, with the attempt to reach the summit of Everest slated for May.