Organisers hope it doesn't snow

Olympic freestyle skiers will have to do their tricks on fake snow during the Turin Games and organisers are hoping none of the real white stuff gets in the way.

Both the aerial and moguls courses in the relatively snow free village of Sauze d'Oulx in the Italian Alps have been created using artificial snow from 20 powerful snow cannons.

"It is all artificial snow. It is the best there is," Andrea Gamba, the Games' freestyle skiing coordinator, said on Thursday. He said his team would have to remove the real snow if there was heavy snowfall as it would create an uneven surface.

The signs so far look good with sunshine forecast ahead of the start of the freestyle skiing programme on Saturday when the women's moguls heats and finals take place.