That victory helped propel her into Britain's team for the Beijing Olympics, an learning experience she intends to build on come 2012.

BBC: 'New Paula' targets gold in 2012

That figure is expected to rise to 8.4m by 2008, partly thanks to the knock-on effects of the Sydney Olympics, which should boost numbers for several years to come.

ECONOMIST: A survey of Australia

The state-funded Met Office, which bills itself as "one of the top two national weather services in the world, " is in overdrive, sending extra weather balloons into the atmosphere to try to get a read on what's to come and providing daily updates to government officials and other Olympics honchos.

WSJ: As Games Open, Britons Excel at National Sport: Talking About Rain

Women's sport has come on leaps and bounds so it's high time there was equal opportunity at the Olympics.

BBC: Jowell calls for Olympic equality