South Bay : FIRING UP FOR THE OLYMPIAD

Students in the South Bay might get to take part in the Olympics right here at home. In a salute to the 1996 Olympics, students will hold a five-city torch relay, a small imitation of the official Olympic torch run, on April 20, through Lawndale, Inglewood, Lennox, Hawthorne and Los Angeles.

Organizers are also working to bring the official Olympic torch through the South Bay as it makes its way to the Games in Atlanta.

Parents, members of the staff of Leuzinger High School in Lawndale and the staff of a local youth group submitted a proposal to the Olympic Committee asking them to change the route for the official Olympic torch run to include Lawndale, Inglewood, Lennox, Hawthorne, Torrance, Carson and Long Beach.

Roberta Mack, director of the group leading the effort, said she hopes to get 200 students to participate in the official event if the committee approves the route change.

After the official torch run April 27, the group plans to send 25 students to Atlanta for the Games. They are looking for corporate sponsors to help cover the $2,500 cost for each student. . . .