IF THE Olympic Sailing next year was a football match then the team hotel would be in Park Lane, the changing room in Chelsea, the pitch in Fulham and the stands at Arsenal.

Dorset Police say that is the scale of the challenge they are undertaking to enable the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic sailing events to run smoothly.

The force has to be ready to deal with any issues at the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy, the official ticketed spectator site at Nothe Gardens, the Olympic athletes' village on Portland, the free Live Site and the festival village on Weymouth seafront site.

It is not a job that any one organisation could do alone and the state-of-the-art Portland headquarters at Osprey Quay is home to a naval officer, a fire brigade officer and two ambulance officers.

Chief Superintendent Dave Griffith, who heads up the county’s Olympic and Paralympic security team, said: “In terms of size it’s a massive area to police.

“If the sailing was a football match with a team hotel, changing room and the field of play then basically the Nothe is the stands and given the distance between them the team hotel is Park Lane, the changing room is in Chelsea, the pitch is in Fulham and the stands are in Arsenal.”

A rigorous programme of testing by the Home Office has begun to ensure all 2012 venues can deal with scenarios such as utility failure, road crashes, criminal acts and terrorism.

Preparations to secure the 35-square-miles of borough competition water includes requesting support from navy warship HMS Bulwark, officers from other forces, plus boats for the 66-day operation period and two jet skis.

On land, Wyke Regis Training Area will provide a screening zone for goods and sniffer dogs will help to check for explosives at the Olympic Village before athletes move in.

The force has secured £19.4million of the Home Office’s £600million budget and is in talks with a borough holiday park provider to secure mobile-home style accommodation for around 180 officers.

Around 540 extra police officers and special constables are expected to be working in Dorset during the Games, assisted by the official 2012 volunteering schemes of Games Makers and 800-strong Weymouth and Portland ambassadors programme to help to manage crowds.

The local security team, working as part of a national Olympic policing operation, also involves the local authorities, Environment Agency, coastguard and Royal National Lifeboat Institution.

Chief Supt Griffith added: “As we get to the last year to go things are happening at such a pace. Plans for the Nothe and the beach are in their infancy, there’s a huge amount of detailed work to do.”