Jacques Rogge says weather, financial problems will not affect Winter Olympics

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Will weather be a problem at the Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver?

Canadian Olympic officials are concerned that unseasonably warm and wet weather could cause problems at some outdoor venues once the Games start Feb. 12. Organizers are particularly worried about the lack of snow at Cypress Mountain, the freestyle skiing and snowboarding venue.

In a teleconference with reporters today, International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge expressed confidence the Games would run smoothly but did acknowledge weather was a concern.

‘That’s the only question mark,’ he said. ‘The rest, I’m very optimistic.’

Rogge said plans were in place to deal with weather-related problems and that ‘competition will take place as schedule.’

Rogge also talked about the financial situation of the Vancouver Olympic Committee, which recently was forced to make budget cuts. Like the weather, Rogge was confident the committee’s financial problems wouldn’t take away from the Games.

‘Savings were chosen very carefully so as not to impact on the quality of the Games and the quality of the experience of the athletes,’ he said. ‘The athletes won’t feel anything about the financial crisis.’

-- Austin Knoblauch

The Associated Press contributed to this report.