With 7 days still remaining this month, Whistler has already surpassed the record for November snowfall, as more than 430cm (172 inches) of white gold slammed the mountains by Thursday afternoon. The previous record, set in 2006, was 416cm (164 inches). So why not see the Host City and Host Mountain Resort before the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games?

Both Vancouver and Whistler are offering accommodation packages to entice visitors to experience both host destinations now — prior to the start of the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, which begin on February 12, 2010.

Ski Sunday returns on 13 December and as well as showcasing the best World Cup action the team will be gearing up for the 2010 Winter Olympics.

It will be presented by Graham Bell and Ed Leigh and will mix classic races with personal insights from Britain’s medal hopes as Vancouver looms. Skier Chemmy Alcott and snowboard-cross star Zoe Gillings will be featured along with the skeleton and bob teams.

Ski Sunday will be shown on BBC2 on Sunday afternoons and this website. And there will also be live World Cup skiing and race highlights online and on the red button.

The countdown to Vancouver has officially begun! The ”100 days out” milestone has officially marked the beginning of the race to the 2010 Olympic Winter Games — and Under Armour just secured some exclusive, behind-the-scenes video of downhill skier Lindsey Vonn, who is one of Team USA’s best hopes for gold in 2010.

As you may know, Lindsey is likely to emerge as the country’s biggest star in Vancouver, with a fierce combination of an indomitable will to win and cover-girl good looks. We had a rare chance to sit down with Lindsey and shadow her through one of her famously grueling workouts… her intensity and preparation are legendary.

This video really gives you a sense of what it takes to be a champion, and really gives you a sense of how Lindsey is ready to kick some serious butt! While Lindsey has made a handful of appearances over the last few months, this is the first inside look at her story — in her own words. It’s pretty powerful stuff and only the first of more to come!

British Olympic Association boss Andy Hunt says preparations for the London 2012 event must not overshadow the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver.

Speaking 100 days before the start of the Games, Hunt said he hoped more than 45 Team GB athletes would be competing.

“There’s no way that I want winter athletes to ever feel like second-class citizens,” said Hunt.

Greek officials were left red-faced after it emerged that former Olympic hurdling champion Fani Halkia, banned for doping, had run a leg of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games torch relay in Greece.

The Greek Association of Olympic winners, who had included Halkia on a list of proposed torchbearers sent to the Greek Olympic Committee, said the blunder was down to human error.

“This is an honest mistake and nothing else,” association president Giorgos Sigalas said. “It was my mistake for not checking the names of the list that was drafted here and was sent to the committee.”

Athletes and spectators will be encouraged to get vaccinated against the H1N1 flu before travelling to next year’s Winter Olympics in Vancouver, an official has said.

The hundreds of volunteers and staff scheduled to work during the February Games are also being urged to get vaccinated as part of Canada’s national immunization effort, which began this week.

An estimated 5,500 athletes and team officials are scheduled to be in Vancouver next year for the 17 days of competitions and they will be joined by thousands of media and spectators from around the world.

Great Britain’s top skiers and snowboarders are facing a funding crisis in the run up to February’s Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

Snowsport GB, the national governing body, have dug themselves a financial black hole following excessive spending with debts of £300,000 reported by acting chief executive Robin Kellen back in August.

Those debts prompted the sacking of then chief executive Mark Simmers, but Kellen and non executive chairman Oliver Jones, were eventually able to arrange a four-year, £350,000 loan with a variety of backers and with the support of lead sponsor British Land.

Organisers of next year’s Vancouver Olympics are confident of meeting their balanced budget goal, saying the economic downturn has had a milder impact than initially feared, officials said.

Sales of high-end ticket packages and billboard advertising in the host city have picked up, and the Vancouver Organising Committee is hopeful of signing another corporate sponsorship deal before the Winter Games begin in February.

VANOC, which released its annual report on Monday, is no longer facing the operational cuts organisers had worried might be needed as the recession threatened revenues for both it and the IOC.