An Indian businesswoman has been chosen among eight foreigners to carry the Olympic torch on Chinese soil in August next year.

Meena Barot, from northern city of Shijiazhuang, came fourth in an online poll after a month-long campaign.

The seven other expats who will carry the torch for 200 metres in order of winning votes are: Jenny Bowen of the US, Marcos Torres of the Philippines, Werner Ebel of Germany, Yoshitoshi Mizuya of Japan, Luis Hong Sanchez of Colombia, Yury Ilyakin of Russia and British-Venezuel an Deirdre Smyth.

Applicants were asked to submit a profile justifying their candidacy, then frogmarched through a public online vote after which a selection panel made up of officials from computer maker Lenovo and the official China Daily had the final say.