With so many environmental problems, why was Beijing awarded the 2008 Olympics?

The IOC makes the decision on awarding games to a city.. It does make me wonder. Could it be that they are thinking more about the huge population of China (potential viewers) than about the quality of competition that will be provided for ALL the athletes??? Nah, they wouldn't do that...would they??|||Yeah, I agree. They are trying to change the weather for the olympics, but scientists don't think that it is possible.|||they had the award winning tooth paste freezsodent