Relying on a first-class drug testing laboratory, equipment, personnel, and strict procedures, BOCOG intends to provide a fair and clean competition platform for the athletes, a BOCOG official told the press on Tuesday. Dai Jianping, vice-director of BOCOG's Games Services Department, said a 6,000-sq-m drug testing center for the Beijing Olympic Games has been built, and elite experts from China and other countries are employed for the mission. The specialists "have abundant anti-doping experience at large-scale international sport events," he added. To ensure the speedy delivery of samples from the test stations to the laboratory, BOCOG will entrust a professional security company to escort the samples all the way. Test stations will be set up at all Olympic venues to gather either urine or blood samples. The clinic of the Olympic Village will also dedicate a floor to doping tests, Dai said. According to Dai, every doping control officer must undergo strict professional training and examination, and the trained officers are now taking part in the Good Luck Beijing sport events to enhance their anti-doping experience. Doping control and testing cover all Olympic venues in the co-host cities, including the venues for football, sailing, and equestrian, said Dai. Meanwhile, BOCOG has attached great importance to anti-doping communication, stressing the work to persuade youths to stay away from stimulants, to pursue a healthy lifestyle, and to keep sports and the Olympic Movement clean. Penny Xiang, another BOCOG official, talked about the menu for the Olympic Village in 2008. She said the menu would be set according to the requests of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the practice of the previous Olympic Games, with western food as its major component, combined with a certain portion of Asian food. Positive reactions to the initial menu and suggestions have come from related specialists after taste testing. The catering service providers are modifying the menu and will submit it for approval in January. "We have taken into consideration the catering needs of different clients from various countries with different beliefs," said Xiang. Regarding hotel prices, she said the rates of standard rooms are within the limits of the bid promise, and the average price falls below the bid promise. For instance, a standard room at a five-star hotel was pledged to be 370 US dollars, roughly 2,960 yuan with the exchange rate at that time, and now, the price of a contracted five-star hotel room is only 2,800 yuan, on average. She said Beijing has sufficient hotel and guesthouse rooms to meet the Games-time needs, and the room rates will become reasonable as the demand and supply set a clearer market scenario. |