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The 115-strong IOC comprises leaders of various sports federations, assorted European and Asian royals and other individuals, sports administrators and businessmen from different countries, all of whom make up the Olympic family.

Those meeting in Beijing will include well-known figures like Sepp Blatter of , through to our own Princess Royal, the heir apparent of Qatar, and others like Nawal Moutawakel, who is from Morocco - she was the first Arab woman to win an Olympic gold, and also the person who chaired the Evaluation Commission that considered .

At the forthcoming session, she will actually be competing with Britain because she is up against Sir Craig Reedie for one of two executive board posts (the third candidate is sitting member Richard Carrion).

Traditionally, the IOC likes to have an executive member from the country hosting the Games, so with a view to 2012, Reedie has a good chance. Were he to be successful, he would become Britain's first representative on the Executive since the Marquis of Exeter back in the 1960s. But then Moutewekal and her supporters will argue the case that a woman on the executive, and an Arab woman at that, is an added bonus.

However, as with much that revolves around the IOC, that election and some of the other interesting movements happen privately rather than in public.

And that is where as a journalist, you rely on the people who have been behind the closed doors to emerge and tell you what has happened. More often than not, they do so - but on the understanding you will not quote them. So you can divulge the information, but not attribute that information directly to them.

Which is where the well-worn journalistic phrase 'source' comes into play. Judging by some of your recent comments, some of you find it frustrating when I use language like 'I understand' or 'a source told me' in my blog. And I will take that on board.

But I hope you can also appreciate, especially when it comes to the IOC and Olympics stories, or for that matter business and politics stories too, why that is sometimes necessary.

It honestly isn't me deliberately trying to hide anything or make a story more involved than it needs to be. In an ideal world everyone would speak up front, and every document would be available for all, but often it just doesn't work like that.

Beijing will be my sixth Olympics, and it is one I am really looking forward to. It will be fascinating to see how the country handles the unique challenges and opportunities the Games present. And also how London, in the shape of new mayor Boris Johnson, will step up come the closing ceremony.

So while I know many of you will still be focused on the and the start of the new season, I hope there will also be topics or stories you will be interested to read, see or hear more about from Beijing, away from the action itself.

So do let me know if there is anything in particular you would like me to to focus on while I am there. I can't promise but will certainly do my best!