Panic gripped East London today as final measurements of the landmark athletics track revealed it to be a full 25 metres too short.
Organisers struggled to explain how the error occurred, but some blamed rogue builders taking shortcuts. Police are asking any home-owners approached by builders offering to tarmac their drives in red concrete to be suspicious.
Others pointed to possible confusion between metric and imperial measurements. There is intense debate among organisers as to how best to solve the problem: "We can either make athletes run a bit further to make up the difference, or introduce a delay between the starting gun firing and the athletes starting the race." said one insider. Another option to put the final section of the track on a slight incline was quickly ruled out.
"Obviously it's disappointing" said Lord Coe, "but on the plus side, we should see more records being broken at this Games than ever before".
Officials were urgently checking other key dimensions before Friday's opening Ceremony. "Nobody wants a repeat of the great 110mm hurdles incident of 1992" said a games official.
In related incidents, paramedics were called to the diving pool after athletes testing the facility plunged off a 14 yard high board into two feet of water, and there was confusion at the volleyball as competitors struggled to hit the ball over a net which, mysteriously, was set at 4 fathoms high.
