VANCOUVER VOICE: Vanoc beef up security after Biden breach

THEY should give Vancouver 2010's communications chief Renee Smith-Valade her own Olympic gold - never has one woman done so much, in the face of such flak, for an Olympic organising committee.

TARGET: US vice-president Joe Biden is attending Olympic events in Vancouver and was the target for a mentally-ill man who breached security during the opening ceremony (Getty Images)

According to Canadian journalists Smith-Valade is popular with the local media and begun last week perkily introducing herself to international reporters, insisting she would do all she could to help.

But the public face of these Games has had to endure more brickbats than any crisis management training could prepare her for.

We would understand if she wanted us all to pack up our laptops and get the first flight home as soon as possible.

Another day brought another mini-crisis for Smith-Valade, who looks like she hasn't slept in a week.

She was forced to apologise for a security breach during last week's opening ceremony when a mentally-ill man was arrested, without a ticket or accreditation, trying to approach US vice-president Joe Biden.

Smith-Valade confirmed the man, who was arrested in BC Place last Friday, had accessed the venue through an official accreditation lane - although reports locally claim his credentials were crudely photocopied and laminated.

News of the security breach is an embarrassment to Vanoc, whose security budge for these Olympics is $900 million (£553m).

However, Smith-Valade insisted there was no danger to Mr Biden, despite the man getting within 12 rows of the US vice-president and wife Jill.

Measures will now be reviewed ahead of the closing ceremony next week.

"We are happy with the way the security system worked. It is multi-layed and it's designed that if one layer is breached, other systems kick in," she said.

"Steps have been taken to tighten things up but I'm not going to speculate on what ifs. The man was arrested without any prohibited items."