Keep your eye on the ball, Rogge tells Beijing

Beijing organisers must avoid complacency if they are to deliver a successful Olympic Games in 2008, IOC president Jacques Rogge said yesterday.

Rogge, speaking at the start of the IOC coordination commission visit to discuss the progress of preparations with the Beijing organising committee (BOCOG), also said attention needed to be paid to the "less tangible" side of hosting the Games.

"Despite the great progress that BOCOG has so far been able to achieve, my experience throughout my Olympic career has been that it is extremely important not to 'take your eye off the ball', because it is often in the moments when you lose your focus that mistakes can creep in," Rogge said.

While Beijing is on schedule with the construction of the venues, there are still concerns about pollution and traffic congestion in the city as well as media freedom and human rights in China.

"We should all remember that the Games are not judged solely by the technical proficiency of the project, but also through the perception that the world has of the Games," Rogge added.

"We must therefore ensure that while all the technical elements are in place that we do not forget to look after the less tangible elements that will ultimately shape the world's image of China and the Games."

Rogge said reports he had heard about the preparations for the Games were very positive.

"When I speak to my IOC colleagues they all tell me how impressed they are with the progress that our Chinese friends are making," he said.

"These comments are a positive signal that the dream of the Olympic Games being held in Beijing and China from all those years ago, when you, our friends, first started out with the idea of hosting top quality Games, are becoming a reality."

The Belgian later went on a tour of the venues and was particularly impressed by the "Bird's Nest" national stadium, which will host the opening and closing ceremonies, the athletics and the soccer final in August 2008.

"It is blending technique, sport and culture, I think it's wonderful," he said.

The coordination commission, led by the IOC's Hein Verbruggen, will be in Beijing until tomorrow.