BEIJING - The world's top athletes had a safe time in the Chinese capital as 80,000 condoms distributed free in the Olympic Village were all taken away during the Beijing Games, a health official said here on Friday.
Zhao Tao, a Beijing Municipal Health Bureau official, said it was a normal practice for Olympic host cities to provide an ample and easy supply of condoms to prevent the spread of AIDS and other sexual diseases.
He added after the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and the 1988 Seoul Olympics, disease prevention departments from the two places monitored a small surge of AIDS infection among the population as the Games brought an enormous influx of visitors.
Beijing's AIDS prevention networks were also closely monitoring if the city would follow suit. The findings would be available before this year's World AIDS Day, which falls on December 1.
He added athletes and the various Olympic delegations were satisfied with Beijing's AIDS-curbing measures during the Games.
To advocate safe sex and AIDS prevention, Beijing's health bureau also distributed 400,000 free condoms in more than 90,000 rooms at 424 hotels rated three stars and above.
In addition, the bureau also distributed 250,000 free pamphlets on AIDS prevention and control in the hotels.
Thousands of Olympic volunteers were also trained to advocate AIDS prevention during the Games.
The Chinese organizers worked with the United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the International Olympic Committee to distribute information about AIDS, condoms and anti-discrimination messages to Games participants.
In the Olympic Village clinic, the condoms were available for distribution along with information on HIV prevention and anti-discrimination in English, French and Chinese.
All Olympians received a fact sheet and two AIDS commercials were shot featuring Chinese basketball star Yao Ming and Michael Ballack, the German football player and UNAIDS Special Representative.
