The world record holder, Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia, said he still intended to participate in the 10,000 meters but could not run in the 26-mile, 385-yard (42.2km) marathon.

Gebrselassie, 34, who holds the world marathon record and two Olympic titles for the 10,000 meters, suffers from asthma.

He said, ‘The pollution in China is a threat to my health and it would be difficult for me to run 42km. But I am not pulling out of the Olympic event in Beijing altogether. I plan to participate in the 10,000-metre event.’

China has spent more than $16 billion on measures to improve air quality in Beijing with, so far, little tangible success. Factories have been closed or moved and millions of cars have been taken off the city’s notoriously congested roads in the past 12 months.

A report by the United Nations in October revealed that there still might not be enough time to clear pollutants for the Games, which begin in August.

Many athletes who suffer from asthma have won Olympic medals. The condition is no bar to sporting success.
The British marathon runner Paula Radcliffe was diagnosed with asthma at 14 and keeps the condition under control with medication. Paul Scholes, the England footballer, found out he had asthma at the age of 21. But gulping in large volumes of polluted air in Beijing will challenge even the healthiest lungs.

The International Olympic Committee is concerned at the rise in athletes claiming to be asthmatic — from 9% in the 1980s to 21% at the 2000 Olympics. It will insist the correct tests are carried out and the proper forms filled in before granting permission for athletes to use asthma drugs.
Source: Belfast Telegraph