BEIJING, Aug 9: Beijing has made impressive progress in its preparations for the 2008 Olympic Games in the year since it was named as host, International Olympic Committee (IOC) officials said Friday.

A 23-strong team of delegates spent three days with the Beijing Organising Committee (BOCOG) this week, monitoring its progress and visiting a number of venues.

“The Coordination Commission is very impressed by what we’ve seen over the last days and I think that it is not exaggerated if we state that BOCOG is well ahead of our expectations,” commission leader Hein Verbruggen told a news conference in Beijing.

The early praise for Beijing contrasts with IOC reports from Athens, host city for the 2004 Games, which have highlighted a number of problems.

Athens organisers have struggled with building deadlines, transportation projects and the accommodation requirements for the hundreds of thousands of visitors who are expected to visit the Greek capital.

Beijing has plans to build new roads and subway lines and improve the environment. It has even launched campaigns to boost manners in the capital to make it a more pleasant place for visiting sports fans and athletes.

The Olympics officials said they had not discussed human rights during the visit, which was the first time coordination commission delegates have checked on China’s preparations.

Rights groups and some Western governments have criticised China for what they consider a poor human rights record, and before the IOC picked Beijing to host the games, many argued it did not deserve the honour because of rights abuses.

Asked if human rights was an issue the IOC would address in talks with China in the future, Verbruggen told Reuters after the news conference: “Under the current circumstances certainly not”.

An IOC spokeswoman said the committee generally tried to focus on sports and give politics a wide berth, but added the issue of human rights could come up in talks if they became an impediment to a successful games.

Despite experiencing mild weather during their visit, the IOC delegation said some officials in Beijing had voiced concern over the original dates set for the games — the last week of July and first week of August — saying they would be too hot.—Reuters