Chinese entrepreneurs and researchers have called for better business management and operation of Olympic venues under construction in Beijing.

Construction workers pass by the National Aquatic Center, dubbed the "Water Cube", in Beijing November 14, 2006. The installation of inflatable films of the center has been completed and the construction is expected to finish by the end of 2007.[newsphoto]

Du suggested at a public forum in Beijing last Sunday that the government separate the operation and ownership of the venues so Chinese and foreign companies can manage them after the Games.

The government should also turn some of them into public sports facilities to help recoup some of the huge investments, he said.

The forum was attended by a group of businessmen and researchers interested in the Olympic's economy.

The Beijing Olympic Games will consist of 37 competition venues and 76 training venues. Of the competition venues, 31 will be in Beijing. The rest will be in the co-host cities of Qingdao, Hong Kong, Tianjin, Shanghai, Shenyang and Qinghuangdao.

Chen Jian, vice president of the Beijing Olympic Economy Research Association, said that the post-Games use of Olympic venues is a challenge for all cities that have hosted the Games, and even more so for China.

He said 12 of the 31 Olympic venues will be open to the public after the Games. To ensure efficient and profitable operations of the venues, experts are preparing recommendations for the government.

As attention is focused on organizing such a mega event, the potential utilization of these buildings after the Games might be ignored, Chen said.

"We should draw lessons from previous Games," Chen said.

"The post-Games use of sports facilities should be considered during the design and planning to ensure investments are recouped and the transition smooth," Chen said.

He noted that the Olympic organizers and the Beijing Municipal Government had made efforts to reduce post-Game risks in venue maintenance.

Chen said of the 31 competition venues only eight would be temporary structures. Twelve are being built and 11 already exist around the city.

The eight temporary buildings can be dismantled after the Games and their materials reused, which would greatly reduce costs, Chen said.

Jiang Xiaoyu, executive deputy chairman of the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad (BOCOG), said in an earlier interview, that optimization and fine-tuning of the venues had taken into consideration several factors:

After the Games they could be used as fitness, entertainment and leisure centres;

To make full use of the existing facilities;

To use as many temporary venues as possible instead of building permanent ones.

These measures have gained support from both the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the international federations.

"There is a tendency to build white elephants," said IOC President Jacques Rogge. "Yes, the venues are full at Games time, and yes, ticket revenue is important for the organizers. However, we should be more clever and find an optimum size that will still be of use after the Games."

In order to ensure the long-term run of Olympic venues, BOCOG has introduced some brand-new methods in selecting the venue owners. Enterprises should not only have capacities of raising funds and construction, but also have experience in venue management and operation. The owner of an Olympic venue will have an operation right of the venue for 30 years after the Games and the owner should offer a feasible plan of how to run the venue during the next three decades, according to Jiang.

For instance, the National Indoor Stadium, standing adjacent to the "Bird's Nest" and the "Water Cube," has adopted the new mode of construction and operation. Guo Ao Investment and Development Co Ltd, owner of the stadium, is in charge of not only the investment, design and construction, but also its long-term operation.

Since the stadium operation is directly connected to the profit, at the stage of planning, full consideration has been given to the post-Game utility and cost-saving factors.

The design reduced the construction cost but did not undermine the functions of the stadium. For example, a part of the stadium can be converted to a kitchen easily and some function rooms can be turned into booths.

The Wukesong Culture and Sports Centre is another good example. Dai Xinzhi, deputy general manager of the Beijing Wukesong Culture and Sports Centre Limited Corporation, said ever since the project broke ground in March 2005, post-Games usage has been a major concern.

The centre is designed for 100 years of service as the largest leisure centre in western Beijing. In addition to an indoor stadium and baseball field, the centre includes a four-star hotel and several office buildings, Dai said, adding that the centre will enhance and stimulate its neighbouring areas' commercial, cultural and sports industry development.

Dai said in the near future, the site will become a capacious park, available to all Beijing residents, with a nearly 100,000-square-metre public green belt to be built within the centre.