BAFFLED onlookers could not believe their eyes this lunchtime as a mysterious, torch bearing runner dashed through High Wycombe.
But despite appearances the Olympic Torch had not returned to the UK for a stint in south Bucks.
Instead, the intrepid athletes were part of the World Harmony Run, which hopes to spread a message of peace wherever it visits.
Tube worker David Boyle said he had to do a double take when he saw the runner while out to refuel his transit van.
David, 47, of Mill End Road, said: "When I saw him I thought, am I seeing something?' I looked again and expected more people to be behind him.
"He looked like a proper runner, I was a runner when I was younger so I could tell by the way he was running."
The torch-bearer was Rostya Vagner, from the Czech Republic, who dashed along the London Road and the A40 to meet his fellow runners in Holtspur.
Ondrej Vesely, from the Czech Republic, had taken four months leave from work to join the run.
He said: "It's to promote friendship and harmony between people. It's nothing to do with the Olympic Torch. It's about harmony and friendship and peace."
The relay system sees the team run 60 to 70 miles a day, and today the route was going between Oxford and London.
Mr Vesely explained the philosophy behind the run.
He said: "Anything good that people do should inspire other people to do good. We think harmony should start with ourselves, from each individual heart, and we offer our goodwill to other people."
The runners invite anybody who wants to carry the torch to join them for a few steps.
The run was founded in 1987 by Bangladeshi athlete and philosopher, Sri Chinmoy.
Since then it has been supported by famous international figures such as Nelson Mandela, Mother Teresa, Mikhail Gorbachev, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Muhammed Ali.
More runners are making the dash for peace in Australia and France at the moment.
The group that ran through town today will soon be heading to Holland, Germany and Sweden.
For more information, go to www.worldharmonyrun.org
