BEIJING, May 22 (Reuters) - A glance from the window of any of Beijing's towering skyscrapers is enough to ascertain the biggest problem facing the city in the run-up to the 2008 Olympics -- smog.

A Woman covers her face as she rests at a park in Beijing. [Reuters]

The biggest event on the global sporting calendar will be hosted in one of the world's most polluted cities unless there are dramatic improvements in air quality over the next 809 days.

The helter-skelter pace of economic growth in China has come at a cost, and in the capital that price is the dirty, yellow-brown haze that restricts visibility and clogs the lungs.

The International Olympic Committee's (IOC) Hein Verbruggen said last week that, while it was definitely a challenge, he was certain the air would be cleaner by the time the Games start.

"They have an interest, they have a genuine straightforward vested interest in presenting this city in the best possible way during the Olympics and that is, for me, more than enough guarantee," he told Reuters at the end of the IOC inspection.

"They voted a budget of $12.3 billion before they won the right to host the Olympics to clean up the air and I'm absolutely sure they're spending it," he said.

"It's an uphill battle but they will deliver. I'm absolutely sure."

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