up look at how we are polluting our planet and ruining our health. In 10 days all eyes will be riveted upon Beijing and the opening of the 2008 Olympic Games. The only question appears to be: Will anyone be able to see them? At present Beijing is shrouded in a thick unhealthy haze which city officials say is due to humid weather which has trapped the city's construction dust, vehicle exhaust, and factory and power plant fumes. Over three million vehicles have already been ordered off the roads and many construction projects have been halted and factories closed. Authorities admit that this may not be enough. Many athletic teams have delayed arriving in Beijing until the last possible moment to prevent risks to athletes' health. Haile Gebrselassie, the marathon record holder, has pulled out of that event, and the Australian Olympic Committee has said that its athletes would be permitted to withdraw if pollution threatens their health. Of course the Games will go on, and athletes will come from around the world to compete. But how ironic it is that although the International Olympic Committee has made strenuous efforts to ensure that athletes are drug-free and the Games are clean, in the end, the air may be so dirty that these young men and women may not be able to give us their best. However, with all the world watching, let us take this opportunity to raise the issue of environmental pollution which after all is not limited to the skies above Beijing. We all share the same planet and breathe the same air. If our factories spew pollutants into the air, it ends up affecting everyone. We are all linked together like the five Olympic rings. Let's use the 2008 Games to highlight a problem which is not China's alone and which we must all make an international effort to solve. Gold is the one metal which does not tarnish, and is thus a fitting prize for an athlete who is the best in the world. Let us all ‘Go For Gold' and start now to clean our cities, seas, and skies so that one day when our children are Olympic athletes they will have clean Games in every sense of the word. __
