Dope warning creates big chill

Bright sunshine darkened the mood again at the Winter Olympics yesterday while potential drugs cheats received a pre-Games warning that they'll never escape their crimes.

After days fretting over the Cypress Mountain freestyle and snowboarding venue, it was the turn of the showpiece Whistler mountain site to feel the effects of the unseasonable warmth.

Officials were forced to inject water, which helps harden the surface, into the downhill course which will stage official training from today for the men's race.

Temperatures have been above freezing in Whistler, reaching highs of around three degrees Celsius.

Officials added that other precautions have been taken to minimise traffic on the courses to preserve them for the skiing events which take place between February 13 and February 27.

Dick Vollet, the VANOC organising committee's vice-president at the site, said helicopters were being used to transport equipment to maintain the integrity of the surface.

"Sometimes a snowcat isn't the most feasible way to move things up to, say, camera positions, so we wind up flying things into position to maintain the field of play," he said.

Snowfall is forecast for today, with up to two centimetres expected to fall.

"Weather is always the wild card and workers are prepared for whatever challenges the weather throws at them," Vollet insisted.

At Cypress, meanwhile, officials were adamant that events will go ahead even though temperatures will hover around the 10-11 degree mark at least until Sunday.

With the opening ceremony taking place tomorrow, the IOC warned dope cheats they will be uncovered, even if it takes nearly eight years of advances in testing to reveal their shame.

"I'm confident cheats who appear here will be identified, sooner or later," said IOC medical chairman Arne Ljungqvist.

"Athletes considering using such substances should know that we will be testing samples years later. If you get free today, you may be identified tomorrow."

A total of 420 doping tests had been processed up to Monday at the new state-of-the-art Vancouver Winter Olympics laboratory where more than 2,000 samples will be analysed.

Meanwhile, Australia's women bobsleigh team of Astrid Loch-Wilkinson and Cecilia McIntosh were celebrating after they successfully appealed against their exclusion from the Olympics.

The Australian Olympic Committee lodged their case after the International Bobsleigh Federation decided not to allocate Australia a continental quota place.

"We won. I had the opportunity to speak to the girls and they squealed for about two minutes and did a happy dance," said Fiona De Jong, the AOC's director of sport.