Olympic torch arrives in San Francisco

SAN FRANCISCO — The Olympic torch arrived for its only North American stop amid heavy security Tuesday, a day after its visit to Paris descended into chaos and activists here scaled the Golden Gate Bridge to protest China's human rights record.

Meanwhile, International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge said the committee would consider ending the international leg of the Beijing Olympic torch relay because of the protests.

The torch's global journey was supposed to highlight China's growing economic and political power. But activists opposing China's human rights policies and a recent crackdown on Tibet have been protesting along the torch's 85,000-mile route since the start of the flame's odyssey from Ancient Olympia in Greece to Beijing, host of the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Rogge told The Associated Press he was "deeply saddened" by violent protests in London and Paris and concerned about the relay in San Francisco, where activists expressed fears that the torch's planned route through Tibet would lead to arrests and violent measures by Chinese officials trying to stifle dissent.

The flame arrived in San Francisco shortly before 4 a.m. and was immediately put in a vehicle to be whisked away to a secret location, San Francisco Olympic Torch Relay Committee spokesman David Perry said. Security was heightened because several protests were planned before the torch's six-mile relay Wednesday.

"We treated it like a head of state visit," airport spokesman Mike McCaron said.

Already, one runner who planned to carry the flame during the San Francisco relay dropped out because of safety concerns, Perry said. The person was not identified, but Perry said he understood the concern.

Three people climbed the Golden Gate Bridge on Monday and tied the Tibetan flag and two banners to its cables. The banners read "One World One Dream. Free Tibet," and "Free Tibet 08." They later climbed down and bridge workers cut down the signs.

The bridge protest's organizers said they would remain faithful to their mission of nonviolence during the torch relay. They said they wanted to take full advantage of the international spotlight to get their message out.

"This is a life-or-death situation for Tibetans," said Yangchen Lhamo, an organizer of the banner-hanging who is on the board of directors of Students for a Free Tibet.