The Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX
Olympiad (BOCOG) officials agreed that the impact of the SARS
epidemic on Beijing's preparations for the 2008 Olympic Games was
limited. They did admit, however, that some international visits
and events originally planned for the March-June period had to be
cancelled or postponed.
"I think the SARS situation has made us more aware of the
potential challenges and risks in the build-up to the 2008 Games,"
says BOCOG Vice-President Wang Wei. "To better equip ourselves for
similar emergencies, we are studying all possible risks we could
encounter in the Beijing Olympics and will establish an early
warning and early response system."
BOCOG has also decided to set up a medical services department
"sooner than planned" as part of efforts to enhance co-operation
with the IOC Medical Department. Although daily life is back to
normal in Beijing, authorities are on guard against a possible
reappearance of the epidemic. At the moment, municipal government
leaders are busy inspecting hospitals, health centres and other
public venues to monitor all the precautionary measures being
taken. Meanwhile, thousands of volunteers are patrolling the
streets educating people about abandoning bad habits such as
spitting and littering.
"There could be sporadic (SARS) cases here and there," Wang Wei
says. "But I'm confident that there will not be another outbreak in
Beijing."
(China Daily Aug 8, 2003)
