A 66-year-old farmer is preparing for a personal "Long March" to Beijing, which he will start in January to support China's bid to host the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.

Ni Yusheng, a torchbearer for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, will leave Taiyuan, the capital of North China's Shanxi province, on Jan 1, to walk to Beijing via Zhangjiakou, he told Xinhua on Monday.

The hike of more than 700 kilometers is expected to take Ni more than 50 days.