Beijing 2008 said Tuesday that it would gain experience for the 2008 Games by successfully hosting the 2006 World Youth Athletics Championships.
Zhang Jiandong, vice president of Beijing 2008, told a news briefing “we have tried our best to reach the Olympic standards in preparing the biggest IAAF tournament ever held in China though the budget is mainly from the government.
“The youth championships has been regarded as a rehearsal of the Beijing Games, at least on the athletics competition, so we’ll make every effort to make it a success”.
The World Youth Athletics Championships is August 15-20 and will feature about 2,000 athletes from more than 160 countries and regions competing in 40 sports.
About 30 people from BOCOG have joined the working staff of the youth championships, which includes officials from the Beijing municipal government and the state sports governing body.
