MUMBAI: The biggest sporting extravaganza The 2004 Olympic Games kicks off in Athens in less than a months time.

With a view to intensifying its effort to penalise any type of illegal reproduction and trade of non-official licensed products, offending the image of the Games, ethically, culturally and financially, Ocog Athens 2004 has implemented a set of stringent measures.

The network aims to locate, confiscate and withdraw products that are out on the market, illegally bearing the Olympic Trade Marks which have been registered to Ocog. It also aims to keep the market 'clean' of pirate products and eliminate all networks of illegal manufacture and circulation of non-official Olympic products.

In the past two months, over 100 businesses and shops throughout Greece have been checked. Over 100,000 pirated items have been confiscated. Close cooperation with the customs authorities has also produced significant results. Over 20,000 such products have already been seized, thanks to the close monitoring of all imports.