Growing calls for some form of protest of the Beijing Games are once again coming to the fore as the event (8-24 August) is fast approaching.

Recent events in Tibet, one of the Chinese regions, have led several politicians, a few months before the start of the Games, to declare a boycott could be possible in one way or another. While some have declined to comment, others are being pressed to boycott the Opening Ceremony to show their disapproval of what is happening in Tibet.

This is certainly a delicate issue which is posing more problems for the Organising Committee apart from those already existing.

The Olympic torch relay has gone through several troubled moments in most of the countries which it has already visited. Protests from Tibetans and others supporting them seems to have had a bad impact on the relay itself and already we have heard that for the next one - in four years time in London - the organisers are already thinking of holding a 'home' torch relay to include only cities in Great Britain.

What is happening in Tibet is certainly (in sporting terms) not the concern of the International Olympic Committee or the organisers of the Olympic Games. It is certainly not a sporting issue. It is a problem which has to be dealt with by the Tibetan and Chinese authorities. It is a political problem which should be solved like all other political problems - around a table. That is the appropriate place to hold discussions which should lead to an eventual long-term solution acceptable to both sides, even if there has to be a mediator.

We might not agree with how the government of the People's Republic of China is treating the Tibetan issue. But this issue certainly has nothing to do with sport. If by boycotting the Games in one way or another, someone might think one is putting pressure on the Chinese Government to improve its handling of the Tibetan issue, then, in my opinion, one is wrong.

So far, there have been no decisions, just rumours. But my main concern is that sport might unfortunately again be used as a political tool. And I fully endorse the opinion of the Organising Committee and that of the president of the International Olympic Committee, Dr Jacques Rogge, that the Olympic Games should go ahead as scheduled with no interference from any nation, wherever it may come from.

Sport is sport and politics is politics. There has never been anyone who has belied the fact that sport is the best way of uniting peoples. The Olympic Games are the most clear example of how people from all over the world meet every four years to celebrate sport together.

If there had to be a repeat of previous boycotts such as those of Moscow (1980) and Los Angeles (1984), not to mention Melbourne in 1956, then global sport will be the main sufferer. And in all probability, there would also be no solution to the Tibetan problem.

Any kind of boycott (or protest) could be harmful to the future of the Olympic Movement. We all know what happened when the United States boycotted Moscow and then the Russians boycotted Los Angeles. The absence of so many top world athletes from the world's top event after the Football World Cup belittled the image of the Games and cast a shadow over whether those who won the medals could be called true Olympic champions - notwithstanding the fact that more records were broken in the Moscow Olympics than in the Games held four years earlier in Montreal when there was no boycott.

Although the vast majority of athletes around the world seem to be against any form of boycott, however, there have been some who hinted they might not take part, though to be fair, there has been nothing official so far.

The Chinese organisers have left no stone unturned in their efforts to maintain their promise of building some first class sports facilities as the Bird's Nest and the Water Cube (the Olympic Stadium and the Swimming Pool) to mention just two of the venues where the events are scheduled to take place next August.

I feel it would be a shame were politics to take a role in these Olympics, wherever it might come from.

Sportsmen and sportswomen have been going through a lot of sacrifices to be able to take part in the Olympic Games in the People's Republic of China. It is true, perhaps, as some have told me, that there might be some problems in Beijing, especially a language problem where public transport in concerned. It is also true, perhaps, that athletes may face some environmental problems in the Chinese capital, but these - and other problems - do not constitute a threat to the Games as one might possibly think. I am sure the IOC would have objected to holding the Games there had these been serious problems.

After all, has there ever been a top sporting event such as an Olympic Games or the Football World Cup which was problem free?

If the leaders decide to boycott the official ceremonies, then let them do so, they have every right to do that. The Games, however, have to go on. The athletes, apart from being allowed to decide on their own as to whether they should take part in the Beijing Games, should refrain from any kind of political protests during the event. They must be made totally aware that they must abide by the Olympic Charter article 51.3 which bans any kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda at such events. Otherwise they will be facing serious consequences.