UK athletes barred from political comments in Beijing

By Adrian Croft

LONDON (Reuters) - British athletes will have to sign a contract pledging not to speak out on politics or human rights in China to be able to take part in this year's Beijing Olympics, the British Olympic Association (BOA) said on Sunday.

To be a member of the British team, athletes will have to agree to a contract stating that they "are not to comment on any politically sensitive issues" involving the host country, BOA spokesman Graham Newsom said.

The Mail on Sunday newspaper said the contract effectively gags athletes from speaking out about issues such as politics, human rights or Beijing's rule of Tibet.

Newsom said the BOA had no intention to censor athletes. It simply wanted to draw athletes' attention to a rule in the International Olympic Committee's charter barring political propaganda at Olympic venues, he said.

The proposed wording of the contract could still be changed, he said. "If there is a feeling that that doesn't reflect what we are after, we will consider the wording," he said.

Newsom said it was a hypothetical question whether athletes would be sent home if they signed the contract and then spoke out on politics in China.

"We are very much about trying to get coverage of sporting performance and the sports itself. Clearly these sorts of (political) issues can impact on our ability to do that if athletes get drawn into this sort of territory," he said.

He said the BOA had not come under any pressure from Chinese authorities to include the clause.