The tireless campaigners at the National Labor Committee have always been among Anita's biggest inspirations. This month they have issued three new reports on sweatshop abuses in China, including a factory that made toxic Thomas & Friends toys (sold at Harrod's), slavery conditions for children making Christmas toys for Mattel and others. One eye-opening report focused on factories turning out Olympic-sponsor Speedo products. Anita was excited about these reports earlier this year, and especially in light of the Speedo report, wanted to challenge the British Olympic Association and Britain's Olympic athletes - past and present - to use their stature and celebrity to do something truly heroic, like Anita did: stand up against human-rights abuses.

The NLC report on Chinese factories producing goods for Olympic sponsors such as Speedo notes that the volume of human-rights abuses in these hell-holes is setting all-time records, and makes a powerful proposal: "Imagine how powerful it would be if some, or even one, Olympic athlete would speak out against the systematic exploitation of Chinese workers in plants producing sporting goods for export to Official Olympics sponsors like Speedo. These athletes have the stature, and voice, to demand that these Olympics workers be treated as human beings, with their rights respected and paid fair wages."

In this report from the National Labor Committee, we learn that "workers in China producing Speedo sporting goods are drowning in abuse."

The NLC infiltrated the factory and discovered a record number of violations at the plant, where employees are forced to work up to 91 hours a week for pennies. "One worker, forced to toil a 23-hour shift at a compression molding machine, actually shed tears as he described how exhausted he was, and terrified that his hands would be crushed by the relentless motion of the machine if he slowed down for even a second." The management is brutal, docking pay for talking on the job or taking even a minute too long for a break. "Supervisors constantly scream at the workers, calling them 'idiots' and 'garbage' if they are not moving fast enough. Workers are prohibited from talking back. One worker, who tried to defend himself by answering back to a supervisor in January, was attacked, choked, beaten and fired."

Surely this is not the legacy of fair play and sportsmanship the Olympics are meant to embody.

And so we would like to extend the challenge to some of Britain's Olympic officials - particularly the BOA's chief Simon Clegg, and the UK's brightest sporting heroes and hopefuls such as marathoner Paula Radcliffe, rowing medalists Steve Redgrave and Matthew Pinsent, cycling medalist Chris Hoy, track star Kelly Holmes, swimming medalists David Davies and Sethen Parry, even legends like Sebastian Coe. Who among you will stand up for human dignity in what should be a celebration of the best humanity has to offer?

Specifically, we also appeal to those potential British Olympians who are likeliest to use Speedo products in particular, such as swimmers Liam Tancock, Kristy Balfour, Lizzie Simmonds, Hannah Miley, Liesel Jones, Sally Forster, Chris Cook, Randall Bal, and Richard Charlesworth, and divers Tandi Gerrard, Hayley Sage, Peter Waterfield, and Leon Taylor. Swimmers David Davies and Mark Foster are members of "Team Speedo", receiving sponsorship directly from the company.

Consider this a challenge of the real character or British sportsmanship. Is Team GB for fair play? Can we be champions without standing on the backs of the poor and exploited? Of course we can. That's the kind of courage Olympians should have.

Use the contact details below to tell the British Olympic Association and/or the British Swimming Association that they can be heroes by speaking out against slavery and choosing not to wear Speedo products until the company cleans up its factories in China.

British Olympic Association
Tel: +44 (0) 20 8871 2677
Fax: +44 (0) 20 8871 9104
E-mail:boa@boa.org.uk

British Swimming Association
Tel: +44 (0) 15 0961 8700
Fax: +44 (0) 15 0961 8701
Email:customerservices@swimming.org

BSA Chief Executive David Sparks: chiefexecutive@swimming.org

You can also contact Speedo, a UK-based company, by mail on:

Speedo International Ltd
Ascot Road
Nottingham
NG8 5AJ
England

or

8 Manchester Square
London, W1U 3PH
England

Tel: +44 (0) 115 9167000
Email:"speedoinfo@pentland.com

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