In his final news conference of the Beijing Games, the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said he was "extremely pleased" by China's organisation.

 

Rogge said: "We had a splendid village, we had state-of-the art venues, we have an impeccable operation and we had great performances.

 

"It is clear that China has put the bar very high.

 

It's going to be a challenge not only for London, but also for all the successive Games.

 

"BOCOG [the Beijing Organising Committee for the Olympic Games] has dearly put the athletes in the centre of these Games."

 

Yet, despite their efficiency, the Beijing Games have been criticised for an absence of spontaneous celebration, for being heavily stage-managed by China's authoritarian Government and for being slightly dull.

 

Rogge said that London should not try to compete with China by building bigger venues but simply play to its strengths.

 

He said: "There are issues London will not be able to equal.

 

"It is clear that the ability to bring in hundreds of thousands of volunteers in the different sites ... is something that number-wise is not going to be easy for London."

 

Rogge described Britain as the nation that invented modern sports, codified its rules and "brought in the values of fair play and other values."

 

He said: "So I think that is the identity that has to be built around London. London is also a very cosmopolitan city, multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, multi-religious so this is something you can also use as an asset.

 

"The rest, I have absolutely no concern, the venues will be first-class."

 

Sebastian Coe, the chairman of London 2012, said: "We are going to work on generating a party atmosphere."

 

Rogge was quizzed about internet access, with many sites remaining blocked throughout the Games despite pledges by the IOC and Chinese officials that they would be open.

 

Rogge said: "We have always urged China to give the widest possible access to the internet.

 

"We acknowledge that the situation has not been perfect, but we acknowledge at the same time that the situation was a major change compared to before the games."

 

"You should not forget one thing: it is not the IOC running the internet, it is the Chinese Government running the internet."