Day 0 - Weather troubles...

It is the day before the big event here in Helsinki, and the big story is the weather, not the athletes or doping scandals. It looks like rain is in the forecast for the next week, and the organizers are a bit concerned about attendance. Up until 2 weeks ago, there were still a lot of tickets left unsold, however, sales have picked up recently. Rain certainly won't help the attendance figures, and there was such a terrible downpour yesterday, that even the computers here at the championships have been given "protection".

Today the weather has turned sunny and spirits are much brighter. Various broadcast and production tests are being run and the opening ceremony rehearsal is currently underway. It is quite incredible to see how much work goes in to putting an event like this on. There is far more work that goes on behind the cameras than in front of them.

The Stadium here in Helsinki was originally built in 1938 for the planned 1940 Helsinki Olympics, however, due to the Second World War, these games did not happen in Helsinki until 1952. The Stadium is quite beautiful, however it does have an old feeling to it. The stadium seated 70,000 during the 1952 Olympics, however, this was downsized to 40,000 during the latest renovations in 1994. The Tower is quite an impressive sight at 72m in height, looking somewhat more like an airport control tower than a stadium building.