Torchbearer Pan Gang carries the Olympic flame during the Beijing 2022 Olympic Torch Relay. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn] 

Employees from Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group Co Ltd, or Yili Group, became torchbearers at the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games and the team of 17 Yili staff members was said to have performed flawlessly at the Beijing 2022 Olympic Torch Relay that took place on Feb 2-4.

Yili Group is the top dairy enterprise in China and the largest in Asia, ranking in the top five worldwide.

The Yili torchbearer team was led by Pan Gang, chairman of Yili Group. His participation in the torch relay meant that he was a torchbearer both of the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics and the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics.

The business chief said it was an honor and a responsibility that belonged to both him and all of Yili’s people. He said the company should not only pass on the Olympic flame, but also pass on the Olympic spirit and concept of health.

The event marks the 17th year of cooperation between the Yili Group and the Olympic Games.

In November 2005, Yili became the only dairy company in China that met the Olympic Games standards and provided services for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

In August 2017, Yili Group joined hands with the Beijing Winter Olympics Organizing Committee to become the official and only dairy product partner for the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022.

To date, Yili has been the only dairy company in China to serve both the Summer Olympics and the Winter Olympics.

Over the 17-year period, Yili has fully supported the long-term training and preparations of nearly 40 national Olympic teams, to help Chinese athletes shine in the international arena.