The flag of the 2004 Summer Olympic Games will fly on the highest peak of Mount Olympus starting Sunday. Several mountaineer organizations have sponsored the initiative in tribute to the return of the Olympic Games to Greece. Athens 2004 Managing Director Ioannis Spanudakis will hand over the flag to the mountaineers at a special ceremony Sunday at the archaeological site of Dion with the Deputy Minister of Public Order, local mayors and other officials in attendance.
Athens 2004 has stepped up its safety precautions eleven months before the opening of the 2004 Games. Forty five thousand policemen, firefighters and other officials from the military and security organizations will be on hand to prevent possible acts of terrorism. The safety precautions are considered the most extensive and with a cost of about $600 million they will be the most expensive in the history of the Olympic Games. In the next two months about 1200 cameras will be installed in the centre of Athens and around sports venues. And the coast guard will have eleven radar stations to monitor Aegaeis and the Ioni Sea lying west of the Greek mainland. By next spring travelers entering all harbour facilities in Greece will need a ticket. Simulated emergency tests will take place within the next few months.
In light of the extensive security precautions taking place at the 2004 Games Greek officials said that foreign security forces are welcome to accompany their Olympic delegations but it will not be necessary. The United States and Australia have said they want to have their own security for their teams.
And finally, more than 16,000 Athenians have applied to join the Olympic private home rental program under which visitors for the 2004 Games will stay in furnished apartments. Olympic officials signed a contract Thursday with two consortia that will manage the process. The rental period is from July 10 to September 10, 2004 and rents will range from 840 to 1,200 euros per person for a minimum six-night stay. Landlords will pay 10 per cent tax on the rents.
