Biometrics used to keep German Olympians safe

German athletes going for Gold in Greece are to be protected in their section of the 'Olympic Village' by the very latest in biometric technology.

The Olympic Games is always a diplomatically tense affair and previous events have been rocked by terrorist attacks - most notably when Germany last held the Games in Munich in 1972 and 11 Israeli athletes were killed.

In the current climate of heightened concern, many teams are looking into additional security. The Israeli team this week erected a giant steel fence around its area in the village while the Iraqi team arrived with a full military escort. Others however, such as the German team, are putting their faith in technology.

NEC will be providing the technology in association with German firm Bundesdruckerei.

NEC's biometric technology was previously employed to protect the doping control room at the Nagano winter Olympics.

Eckhard van Deest, general manager of security solutions biometrics, NEC, said: "We are proud to be part of this project, because it means we can make a contribution to the security of our Olympic team in Athens."

On registering with the scheme, accredited visitors will receive an ID card containing their fingerprint biometrics data that will enable them to access the 'German House'.

Accredited visitors will include athletes, coaching staff, team management and members of the media.