With Olympics Months Away, China Still Battling Perilous Pollution Problem

The Beijing Olympics is just a few months away and athletes from around the world will descend on the heavily polluted city of Beijing. American athletes are busy asking doctors the best way to prepare for breathing in the noxious fumes.

And as the New York Times reports, suggesting that the athletes wear masks up until the moment they perform, might raise tensions.

To protect the athletes, Mr. Wilber is encouraging them to train elsewhere and arrive in Beijing at the last possible moment. He is also testing possible Olympians to see if they qualify for an International Olympic Committee exemption to use an asthma inhaler. And, in what may be a controversial recommendation, Mr. Wilber is urging all the athletes to wear specially designed masks over their noses and mouths from the minute they step foot in Beijing until they begin competing.

His multipronged strategy could give the United States team an advantage over teams from less-prepared countries. But the plan has a downside: it runs the risk of offending the host country, creating political tension.

Chinese officials say the air in Beijing, one of the most polluted cities in the world, will not be an issue when China’s first Olympic Games start Aug. 8. They plan to limit vehicle use, close factories and do everything in their power to bring blue skies to Beijing. Jacques Rogge, the I.O.C. president, said he was confident the air would be clean because Chinese officials “are not going to let down the world.”

Right. As if the fact that residents of Beijing and other cities don't regularly wear masks in public because the air is so thick with toxins you can see it (and you can't see the city either). Chinese officials are going to try and shut down businesses upwind so that the skies lighten up in time for the Olympics and ban cars from operating during the Games.