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 news

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