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Qingdao: Algae free
"We have the eyes of an eagle and the speed of a puma and have worked really hard to fight this."
Wang Haitao
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Organisers win the war on disruptive algae.
Olympic organisers say they have won the battle to clear the huge area of algae that threatened to disrupt the sailing competition.
The coastal resort of Qingdao was hit by vast bouts of green algae which forced sailors away from their training schedules in June.
Olympic organisers then launched a huge clean-up operation when they deployed 1,400 boats and mobilised 10,000 troops to clear the danger.
The Chinese authorities have now claimed victory ion the battle against the algae, and the venue is now clear and ready to host the Olympic regatta.
"In the competition area, the algae is completely gone," Wang Haitao, vice-director of Publicity Department of Qingdao Municipal Communist Party Committee said.
"Outside the area of Qingdao, there are still some areas of algae but it will not disturb the competition."
Organisers will continue to monitor the situation and will use containment booms and nets to ensure that the dreaded algae cannot sneak back in to disrupt things.
"We have the eyes of an eagle and the speed of a puma and have worked really hard to fight this," said Wang.
American sailor John Dane thought that the conditions had improved markedly after the efforts of the Chinese.
"Yesterday we didn't see any algae. It's the cleanest day we have had," he said.
"We were here for two days in June and it was really bad. We came back in mid-July and it was improved.
"Yesterday, only one time did we see a string of algae on our keel and that is such a change."
The Olympic sailing competition runs from August 9-21 in Qingdao, which is situated 450 miles south east of Beijing.
