A 41-member IOC inspection team headed by Verbruggen Hein is in Beijing from Dec. 2 to 4 for its first comprehensive meeting with 2008 Olympic Games organizers.
Francois Carrard, director general of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), praised the city’s preparations by saying “so much work has been done, so much progress is going on in Beijing that we do not feel this is the first meeting”.
The delegation will hold talks with the Beijing Organizing Committee on venue construction, marketing, sports, environment, athlete service, communication, and accommodation.
In Beijing, rustic but ramshackle neighbourhoods in the old city will be removed and replaced with commercial boulevards and grass, while many residents and polluting factories will be moved to the suburbs.
IOC sports director Gilbert Felli said the environmental clean-up and subway projects were the biggest Beijing had to contend with but did not foresee any obstacles meeting deadlines. He added, “our experience is that if any additional energy is required, you start seeing those areas maybe two or three years before the Games”.
