THE first group of Bulgarian athletes left for the Turin 2006 XX Olympic Winter Games on January 31. The group consisted mainly of the national biathlon team, considered Bulgaria's great hope for a gold medal in the games. The team includes Nagano 1998 gold medallist Ekaterina Dafovska, as well as Pavlina Filipova, Irina Nikulchina, Radka Popova, Nina Kadeva and Vitalii Rudenchik.

Bulgaria's participants in the biathlon discipline, along with the sports pair in figure skating Rumyana Spasova and Stanimir Todorov, left for Italy after a special mass was said for them.

Todorov left for the games with an asthma attack-induced fever. He was forced to go untreated because of the forbidden substances of which the medications might consist. Vassil Tonchev, head of the Bulgarian Biathlon Federation, proposed on departure day that Dafovska carry the national flag during the opening ceremony of the games.

"I think that that is normal, considering the fact that Dafovska is the only Bulgarian with a gold medal form winter Olympics," Tonchev told journalists at Sofia Airport.

"I do not mind, under the condition that it will not be too cold," answered Dafovska, when asked for comment. All from the women's team left for Turin in good health and positive spirits.

Problems might touch only Irina Nikulchina, who will get her new set of skis when she arrives in Turin. The skis had been made especially for her, and Tonchev expected her to have enough time to adjust to them. The exact position of each of the athletes in the relay race will be determined depending on each one's functional status before every race, Tonchev said. The best performer in the games from the team will receive a car as a reward.

"The only condition that we have is for the athlete to finish among the first six," he said.

The Turin 2006 Winter Olympic Games will be held February 11-26. The opening ceremony at the Stadio Olimpico will be shown on Bulgarian National Television (BNT) on February 10 at 9 pm. Among the names of the organisers are those of Giorgio Armani, who will stylistically take care of the protocol moment in which the Italian flag will appear and Roberto Bolle, dancer etoile of the Teatro alla Scala of Milan, will perform.

The Olympic ceremonies will be followed by 35 000 spectators at the stadium and by about two billion television spectators worldwide.

The programme for the opening day of the games offers many opportunities for sports fans. Men's biathlon and ski jumping will be the first competitions people can watch on BNT, starting at 12:20 pm on February 11. The same day, a short programme of the figure skating pairs competition and a record from 15 km Nordic combined ski running will be transmitted starting at 10 pm. The broadcasts will continue with free-style ski for women, luge and speed skating. At the end of the day BNT, will show a round-up for the day.