Sports: IOC laud the efforts of Beijing

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Guatemala city, July 6 : Preparations for next year's Beijing Olympics received rave reviews from the International Olympic Committee, which described progress as ''excellent.'' The IOC's chief inspector for the Beijing Games, Hein Verbruggen, said solid foundations were in place for a successful Olympics.

''Excellent progress has been made across the board,'' Verbruggen told an IOC session in Guatemala City following a presentation by the Beijing Games organisers (BOCOG).

''The venues took our breath away,'' he added.

''All the venues are spectacular and will offer a very, very powerful backdrop to the Games.'' Verbruggen said organisers also had an unprecedented sponsorship programme and ticket sales would be strong.

Organisers and the city were doing their best to tackle pollution. China's rapid economic growth has put a strain on the environment and raised major concerns.

''Clearly, as a sports organisation, we want to be assured that the world's athletes will compete under proper environmental conditions,'' Verbruggen said yesterday.

Organisers this summer will try out several contingency plans to reduce air pollution, including pulling 1 million cars off the streets, plans which could be put in place next year if necessary.

China has also been under fire from international groups for its human rights record, including concerns about child labour and jailing dissidents.

They have accused Beijing of failing to deliver on promises to improve human rights ahead of the Games.

Verbruggen said BOCOG needed to strengthen how it dealt with those matters because they could threaten the reputation of the Games. But he said the IOC's main focus was firmly on the sports event.

''We cannot allow those albeit important agendas to distract us from our primary position, which is of course to ensure that a successful Games is hosted,'' Verbruggen said.

Reuters>