Of course, it's a different kind of champion in a different kind of competition. The Olympic Champion Crew programme at fast-food giant McDonald's, a worldwide partner of the Olympic Games, is picking its best staff to provide services at the Games.

Next year, a total of 200 staff and managers will join McDonald's Olympic Champion Crew through global selections. They will serve athletes, coaches, spectators and media at the outlets in several Olympic venues during the Beijing Olympics.

I like McDonald's Olympic initiative for several reasons.

First, it recognizes and rewards efforts from McDonald's best people. One finalist was quoted as saying that the programme "really helps us feel part of the McDonald's family and reminds us that we are part of a national network across China," and he "finds it encouraging to know that the career path I've taken is one that is perhaps being followed by someone in Germany or Australia, who might also join the Olympic Champion Crew in Beijing in 2008."

Second, although it was basically an internal training exercise, through marketing efforts it has generated a lot of interest from the public and media that will help build McDonald's image as the official restaurant of the Olympic Games. It's a good example of an integrated marketing campaign that makes all aspects of marketing communication including sponsorship of a sports event and media relations work as a unified force.

In comparison, many other sponsors of the Beijing Olympics, who paid hefty fees to win the right to identify themselves with the Games, have yet to come up with creative marketing communication ideas, instead of just showing off Beijing Olympic logos in their promotions.

Third, the strategy of intensifying staff training during the run-up to the Olympics and deploying the best staff at Olympic venues is something that both Olympic sponsors and non-sponsors could learn from.

People would be happy if in the next couple of years, sponsors and non-sponsors send their top staff to the Olympic venues and surrounding areas. This would help to guarantee that there are no postal workers who look cold and distant, no bank clerks who take noon naps despite long queues, and no parking fee collectors who tend to overcharge.

But our lives would be even nicer and easier if everybody in the service sector started to improve themselves now and embarked on their own pursuit of excellence. According to McDonald's, more than 75 per cent of its staff throughout the country have joined the competition to be Olympic Champion Crew members. Let's hope each and every one of them will eventually become a champion in their own way.