As the liaison between Beijing Games organizers' BOCOG and the the Marketing Commission of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Li Hong's job entails fending off ambush marketers and protecting the Olympic brand from being infringed.

A new set of legal rules related to Olympic sponsorship and marketing are alien ideas to much of corporate China, she said.

"A number of Chinese companies have shown their enthusiasm for the (Beijing 2008) Olympic Games, but protecting the Olympic brand and ambush marketing are new concepts to them," said Li,the representative of the IOC based in Beijing.

"I hope the upcoming Olympics will teach more Chinese companies about Olympics-related rules so that more companies can benefit from them."

Li, an engineering major from China's renowned Tsinghua University, later pursued her Master's degree in the United States then worked there as an engineer for four years.

She said her life had changed dramatically since signing up with the IOC.

"People should know more about themselves in their 30s. Certainly I realized that I was fed up working with steel bars and concrete, and wanted better communication with people," she said.

After finishing off her studies at Harvard, Li went to work in Switzerland, where the IOC headquarters are based, with her Swiss husband Olivier Glauser.

When Beijing won the right to host the 2008 Games, the IOC seized upon Li for her familiarity with both Eastern and Western cultures.

"For the IOC, holding the Olympic Games in Beijing is a good opportunity to spread the Olympic spirit among China's 1.3 billion people. So they needed a Chinese person with a background in the US and Europe to work with local organizers in Beijing. I just met this requirement."

Her interest in sport - especially track and field - also helped. It made her more athlete-oriented.

"We know that the Olympic Games should be all about the athletes. Maybe my understanding of the Olympics moved the IOC so I got the offer."

Six months later, she accepted.

"I was married at the time, so it would have involved moving the whole family if I were to accept," she said. "Considering the prestige of the event, I never imagined that one day I would be able to work as a bridge between all these different cultures"

In March 2003, the 34-year-old started her work at the IOC and that September she moved back to Beijing with her husband and son. She is the first Chinese to work in a managerial capacity at the IOC since the start of modern Olympic Games in 1896.

She said the IOC and BOCOG have very different working styles.

"Since I understand both the Chinese and Western cultures, I can communicate with them both clearly and adjust their working timelines accordingly."

She said one of her key tasks is to ensure the Games do not become too commercialized - a popular complaint these days.

"A successful Olympic marketing plan helps athletes from all over the world compete in the Games, and the drive against ambush marketing is an important way to avoid over-commercializing the Games, which stop more companies linking themselves with the Olympics," said Li.

"Getting more financial support from fewer companies is another successful marketing strategy."

But most Chinese companies are still not au fait with the rules of transacting in regard to the Olympics and have resorted to ambush-marketing by default. This refers to their deliberately linking their brand with the Olympics without authorization from the IOC or from BOCOG.

She said the Olympics depends on its official sponsors to thrive and survive, relationships that afford the viewing public a higher level of service and enjoyment.

"With the support of those sponsors, people can watch the Olympic competitions through TV for free and athletes can participate in the Games. So we should let more people know the harm of ambush-marketing."