The Buzz About Olympics Security in Greece.

Fears grow over security chaos at Athens Olympics in terrorist crisis

American athletes voice concerns about al-Qaeda and Greek games despite billions spent on safety measures

Denis Campbell in Athens
Sunday May 16, 2004
The Observer

Visitors taking a ferry from Athens's ancient port of Piraeus this August should not be surprised to see bubbles rippling the surface, oxygen tanks protruding here and there, and dark figures in wetsuits carrying guns swimming below.
Frogmen armed with M-16 rifles and grenade launchers are the most dramatic symbol yet of Athens's desperate desire to convince a sceptical world it can ensure that al-Qaeda or similar groups do not turn the Olympic Games into another 11 September, Madrid or Bali. The divers of the Greek navy are intended to protect the VIPs and corporate bosses staying on luxury yachts moored in Piraeus Harbour, such as South Africa's President Thabo Mbeki.

The skies will be guarded by helicopters and spy planes and an airship, the sea by submarines and US battleships. Around the host city some 1,600 close-circuit cameras will monitor the movement of people and vehicles. Rigorous searches will produce long queues at venues. In all, 70,000 security personnel will be involved - four times more than were used at the 2000 Sydney Olympics - and the whole operation will cost around £675 million, five times as much as Sydney.

But with less than three months to go before the opening ceremony on 13 August, serious questions persist about Greece's ability to keep 10,500 athletes and two million spectators safe at the biggest sporting event on earth. Despite Greece insisting that the event 'will not be 100 per cent safe but 120 per cent safe', Britain, America, Australia and Israel betray a mixture of anxiety and fear.

'An Islamic terrorist attack on the Olympics is what everyone is planning against. That's why all this money is being spent, equipment brought in and training done,' said an official from one of the nervous nations. 'If you wanted to capture the world's attention, the Olympics, which are watched by four billion people, would be a good way to get it.'

The official reels off a list of weaknesses in Greece's anti-terrorist strategy - the most hi-tech in sporting history - before adding pointedly: 'Their security plans are still a work in progress. They aren't ready yet. There's a lot of things still to be done before the security arrangement can be put fully into place, like finishing building all the venues so that cameras and scanners can finally be installed'.

The sense of dread is strongest in America. Robert Mueller, director of the FBI, has singled out Athens as a likely al-Qaeda target. Any judgment of whether security would be adequate by August would be 'premature', he said - hardly a vote of confidence in the Greeks.

Others speak more plainly. Mark Spitz, the swimmer who won seven gold medals at the 1972 Olympics, last month aired the fears of many athletes when he predicted a pullout by the entire 700-strong US team over security fears. 'We know there is a high degree of probability that something could happen in Athens', he said. 'Would it be political suicide to send a team there if you were the Bush administration?'

Tennis champion Serena Williams added to the debate in the US, where 52 per cent of people believe a strike in Athens is likely. She admitted that she and her sister Venus might not defend their Olympic doubles title because 'I think my security and my safety and my life is a little bit more important than tennis, and so if it became a real concern to where I personally wouldn't feel comfortable, then I wouldn't go to Athens'.

Others share Robert Mueller's apprehensions. Although Tony Blair expressed 'every faith' in Greek preparations on 6 May, the day a left-wing Greek terror group exploded three small devices outside an Athens police station, some of his most senior ministers do not agree. At least one cabinet minister has privately expressed concern for the safety of the UK's 350 athletes. The 24-hour armed guards Greece promised for athletes from 'high-risk' countries like Britain and Israel, have not ended such disquiet.

Australia has asked to bring its own armed officers - America and Israel want the same - and they will have two jets on standby during the Games to remove their athletes if there is any incident. The 6 May bombs prompted South Korea's gymnasts to rethink plans to hold their pre-Olympic training in Athens. They now hope to use Ukraine or Romania instead.

However, Craig Reedie, a British member of the IOC, is more relaxed. 'No Olympic organising committee has ever taken security as seriously as Athens. Perhaps that's inevitable because we live in a very dangerous world. You can't be anything but impressed by the effort that has gone into security. The British Olympic Association's view is that everything that could be done is being done. We're comfortable with the arrangements that have been put in place, and there's no apprehension, anxiety or fear among our athletes.'
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This is most of the article from the Observer.
Would you go to the Olympics in Athens? ARE you going?
Do you think the security is over the top...correctly adjusted to the threat...or not enough?

Is Greece lax with this issue, or have they gotten a bum rap?