OLYMPIC GAMES PREPARATIONS: Amid a cacophony of noise from jackhammers, power tools, vehicles and builders, the unfinished Olympic Stadium opened yesterday.

The sprint to make sure it is completed before the Olympic Games open on August 13th may at times have resembled an obstacle race, but organisers were able to breathe a sigh of relief when a starter's pistol interrupted a pneumatic drill at 9.10 a.m. for the first race of the Greek Championships.

The bulldozers and cranes that continue to loom over the stadium show there is still much to do before it stages the opening ceremony in 63 days, but officials are now convinced it will be ready on time.

Athens has already scored a major victory with the completion this month of the glass roof, designed by the Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, which soars above the stadium. The project was at one time under such serious threat that there were calls from worried International Olympic Committee officials for it to be scrapped.

The Athens organisers, though, always insisted it would be in place in time.

"I'm very impressed. It's almost done," said Ekaterini Thanou, the Olympic silver medallist in the 100 metres and the winner over the same distance here last night.

The organisers are hoping to use this three-day event as a major test for 700 volunteers, as well as countless police and other security personnel.

The area surrounding the stadium still resembles a building site but, when the landscaping is completed by the end of July, planners are predicting a spectacular setting.

Builders continued to work throughout yesterday's event. So far only 7,000 of the 75,000 seats are in place for the games, but the rest should be installed by the end of this month.

It was probably just as well only about 500 Athenians took the opportunity of free entry for a sneak preview. Even the presence of the country's Olympic 200 metres champion Kostas Kederis failed to attract them. He won the 100 metres in 10.18 seconds on the new track and is confident Greece will throw itself fully behind the games.

"The stadium's going to be even more spectacular when it's full," said Kederis. "It's going to be a great experience."