Chinese man rides rickshaw to London Olympics

This guy deserves a gold medal for determination:

LONDON (AP) -- It's a tale of Olympian proportions: A man, a rickshaw, and a slow journey from a Chinese village to London through 16 countries.

Chinese farmer Chen Guanming claimed Thursday that his two-year odyssey to the London Games took him from Thailand's floods to Tibet to snowed-in Turkey to Britain since he started in 2010.

The 57-year-old, who said he had never traveled outside China before this trip, said he wanted to support the athletes and "spread the Olympic spirit." He's also seeking a last-minute ticket to attend Friday's opening ceremony.

"I came to support and cheer all the people from all over the world who are participating in the sports," said Chen, who sports a silvery white beard and a small ponytail. "I'm volunteering, I'm not looking for a reward."

His three-wheeled rickshaw, loaded with his possessions, is plastered with pictures of him posing in front of international landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. ...

According to Chen, his journey began in April 2010 in his village in eastern China's Jiangsu province, where he farms rice and other crops. Over the next two years, he said he covered 16 countries including Vietnam, Thailand, Pakistan, Turkey and Italy.

His worst experiences, he said, were traveling during Thailand's floods and being trapped in freezing temperatures in the snow in Turkey. He arrived in Britain by ferry from France on July 6, he said.