ON WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, THE OLYMPIC TORCH WILL FLICKER OVER INNSBRUCK, THE WINTER SPORTSMEN OF THE WORLD WILL CEREMONIALLY PARADE IN THE BERGISEL STADIUM, AND THE NINTH WINTER OLYMPIC GAMES WILL HAVE BEGUN.

TRAINING IS NOW IN ITS FINAL STAGES FOR THIS, THE LARGEST WINTER OLYMPICS EVER HELD. ALTOGETHER 32 EVENTS ARE TO BE DECIDED INVOLVING 96 MEDALS AND OVER 100 SEPARATE HEATS.

WITH TELEVISION REACHING SO MUCH OF THE WORLD AND IMPROVED METHODS OF TRANSMITTING AND DISTRIBUTING THE EVENTS ON FILM, THERE IS PERHAPS MORE PUBLIC INTEREST IN THE COMING GAMES BE ROUGHLY ONE JOURNALIST TO EVERY COMPETITORS: 35 COUNTRIES ARE SENDING 1,300 COMPETITORS AND 1,200 JOURNALISTS. THEY WILL CONTEST AND COVER MOST SPORTS PRACTICES ON SNOW AND ICE: NORDIC AND ALPINE SKIING , FIGURE AND SPEED SKATING, ICE HOCKEY AND BOB-RUNNING, AND CURLING WILL BE A DEMONSTRATION EVENT.

TRAINING THIS YEAR HAS BEEN SERIOUSLY HANDICAPPED BY A LACK OF SNOW, BUT THE AUSTRIAN AUTHORITIES HAVE DONE MUCH TO COMPENSATE THE LACK BY TRANSPORTING HUNDREDS OF TONS OF SNOW TO THE COURSES AND THE LATEST NEWS IS THAT SNOW HAS BEEN FALLING AND HAS BEEN HARD-PACKED ON THE RUNS, MAKING THEM EXCEPTIONALLY HARD AND FAST.

WHEN OUR CAMERAMAN TOOK A LOOK ROUND THE OLYMPICS SCENE TODAY (SUNDAY) HE FILMED SPEED-SKATERS AND FIGURE SKATERS PREPARING FOR THEIR EVENTS. UP ON THE SKI SLOPES COMPETITORS FROM AS FAR A FIELD AS JAPAN AND NORWAY WERE TRAINING TOGETHER. THEY WERE TAKING IT SLOWLY TO GET THE FEEL OF THE COURSE. THE SMALLEST BUMP COULD MEAN THE DIFFERENCE OF WIN OR LOSE. COMPETITORS WERE ALSO TRAINING IN EARNEST ON THE SKI-JUMP PERHAPS THE MOST SPECTACULAR OF WINTER SPORTS.