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FISU Official Praises Beijing and Offers Advice for Olympics
Beijing has done an excellent and great job in its organization of the 21st World University Games, International University Sports Federation (FISU) official John Warnock said Friday.
And at the same time, Warnock, chairman of the Football Technical Committee of the FISU Technique Commission, also offered advice of improvement to Beijing, who last month was awarded the right to host the 2008 Summer Olympic Games, saying that fields, communication network, results service as the main aspects that Beijing should improve on to organize a great Olympic Games.
"The pitches are excellent," said Warnock, who is here to work with the Organizing Committee of the Universiade to ensure all the technical aspects of the football competitions be looked after. " All the pitches not only have good surfaces but also have excellent supportive facilities. There are changing rooms, medical room, referees' room and everything is good."
The Beijing University Wusi Stadium was acclaimed as showpiece by the British man. "That's a good field. It's got very fine grass, it's been really well looked after. That's a showpiece surface," He said.
Then Warnock proposed that one more pitch with floodlight would be better for the Universiade soccer tournament. FISU would like to attract spectators with more evening matches on the condition that final round matches of the same preliminary group be played at the same time but Beijing only has three stadiums with floodlight for the Universiade.
"If I had a criticism, I would say it will be nice to have one more pitch with floodlight," he said.
Warnock also told Beijing to get all the training venues in good conditions for the Olympics to make it fair to all teams.
Warnock expressed his appreciation to the Chinese Football Association which helped organize the football competitions.
"I am pleased with the people working on the organizing committee and the technical commissions, because they are all experts," he said.
"The Chinese Football Association has been very supportive, they appointed experts to help with the program. They work so hard to make sure that the football side of the Universiade is the highest-level possible."
But he admitted there was some problem in the information flow.
"At the moment there is essentially a little bit problem with the communication, but it's difficult to make sure every system is working correct to start with and I think maybe in a couple of days everything will be working through."
He believed that for the Olympics, the results package has to be made so that it can be used by all the people who need to access that kind of information - the press, the Technical Committee and the Organizing Committee.
Besides, Warnock reminded Beijing to take more care on the transport, especially to the training program, and prepare more water and ice in training sessions when the city hosts the Olympics in 2008.
Warnock spoke highly of the accommodation, the security and hailed the Universiade as the best since the 18th Universiade in Fukuoka.
"I think it's the best since 1995," he said.
Warnock underlined he was just trying to find a quarrel in a straw, for the sake of the Beijing Olympics.
"The Universiade has become a practice ground for the Olympics, " he said. "So for people who work on that presumably this is a training ground for the bigger event in 2008."
"The structures here are very good, all the services are very good," he said. "However, it's easy to criticize because you can always make things a little better."
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