The finals of swimming as well as team and all-round gymnastics at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games will be held in the morning, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said yesterday.

"The IOC Executive Board has approved a final version of the competition schedule which sees a spread of events throughout the day, with some finals in the morning, some in the evening," said Hein Verbruggen, IOC Co-ordination Commission chairman of the Beijing Games, following a three-day meeting.

Olympic broadcaster NBC had requested moving the swimming finals from the evening to morning hours so that the competition can be shown on evening prime time in the US. NBC has paid US$3.55 billion for the exclusive North American media rights to the Games from 2000 to 2008.

The proposal led to a controversy with some swimmers accusing the IOC of putting the interests of the broadcaster before the needs of athletes.