PARIS - Organizers canceled the final leg of the Olympic run through Paris after chaotic protests Monday, snuffing out the torch and putting it aboard a bus in a humiliating concession to protesters decrying China's human rights record.
Worried officials extinguished the torch and placed it on the bus five times throughout the day as protesters tried to grab the torch and block the relay. At least two activists got almost an arm's length away before they were seized by police.
Another protester threw water at the torch but failed to put it out before being taken away.
The 17.4-mile route started at the Eiffel Tower, headed down the Champs-Elysees toward City Hall, then crossed the Seine before ending at the Charlety track and field stadium.
The chaos started at the Eiffel Tower moments after the relay began. Green Party activist Sylvain Garel lunged for the first torchbearer, former hurdler Stephane Diagana, and shouted "Freedom for the Chinese!" before security officials pulled him back.
The torch moved on but was soon put out by security officers and placed aboard the bus after a crowd of activists waving Tibetan flags confronted the torchbearer on a road along the Seine.
The torch went back on the bus less than an hour later after the procession was halted by activists who booed and chanted "Tibet!"
"We respect that right for people to demonstrate peacefully, but equally there is a right for the torch to pass peacefully and the runners to enjoy taking part in the relay," International Olympic Committee spokeswoman Giselle Davies told The Associated Press.
Security officials appeared to interrupt the procession for the third time simply because they had spotted demonstrators ahead. Protesters threw plastic bottles, cups and pieces of bread at the bus, and at a male athlete in a wheelchair.
"Nothing is happening as planned. It's unfortunate," Diagana told France 2 television.
The torch went back inside the bus a fourth time shortly after a protester approached it with a fire extinguisher near the Louvre. Officers grabbed the demonstrator before he could start to spray. Police said later that at least 28 people had been taken into custody.
The flame was whisked into a bus for the last time outside the National Assembly, where protesters gathered and a banner on the building read: "Respect for Human Rights in China."
Other demonstrators scaled the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame cathedral and hung banners depicting the Olympic rings as handcuffs.
"The flame shouldn't have come to Paris," said protester Carmen de Santiago, who had "free" painted on one cheek and "Tibet" on the other.
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