大象传媒

Conditions in Hong Kong have taken a turn for the worse with .

Gale or storm signal 8 was issued at 5.40am this morning and again at 11am when the rain was torrential.

With gusts of wind up to 93mph, the British team riders were advised to stay in the Olympic village rather than give their intended press conference at Sha Tin Racecourse.

The doors of our media hotel were barred shut and all of the local shops are closed.

Hong Kong

The most serious concern here, as in Beijing, is the weather.

The skies are blue but come 11 o'clock in the morning, the heat is so oppressive that half an hour outside is as much as anyone not accustomed to it can bear.

The cross-country section of the three-day-event on Monday begins early in the morning but is unlikely to have finished until 11.30am so the later starters will be at a serious disadvantage, unless the is much cooler than here at .

At a distance of only 5.7km it is already the shortest cross-country course in Olympic memory and discussions are taking place about the possibility of it being shortened further.

Having said that, conditions can change very quickly and with rain forecast for the next five days and talk of a typhoon at the weekend, the stamina-sapping heat may be the least of the problems.

is a terrible blow for the sport as 90% of the media and public interest surrounds her.

But it is better for the team that this has happened now and not out in Hong Kong when it would be too late to bring in a replacement.

My specialist subject is horse racing but I've always covered a range of sports. I was the co-presenter of the main evening highlights programme from both the Athens and Sydney Olympics and hosted coverage of the Paralympics in 2000 and 2004.

I started in radio and still present for up to seven hours a day during Wimbledon for Radio 5 Live.