The Tibetan Antelope is leading the race in bidding for the official mascot of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, according to the latest internet survey released on Tuesday.

The mascot, which will be announced on June 1st, has several candidates including the giant panda, the Chinese tiger, the golden monkey and the red-crowned crane. But the Tibetan Antelope is recognized by many as the best choice.

The Tibetan Antelope lives in Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau at an altitude between 4,000 and 5,500 meters above the sea level.

The animal portrays the Olympic spirit very well because its speed can reach as fast as 100 kilometers per hour.

As the hometown of the candidate Tibetan Antelope, Qinghai Province in northwest China is pulling out all the stops to get the plateau animal chosen.

After submitting their application for the bid to the Beijing Organizing Committee of the 2008 Beijing Olympics in 200, Qinghai has created six Tibetan Antelope designs. A special team was set up by the provincial government to lead the campaign in January 2005.

They have been to many key cities across China to seek for more support to the bid, including Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.

Source: Xinhua