Snow arrives in Sweden

The stages of the 2008 World Rally Championship's only winter event, Rally Sweden, look a lot more like they should do this morning after 10 cm of snow fell overnight.

Until yesterday the region where the stages are based - between the towns of Hagfors Torsby and Karlstad - was largely free of the snow banks and white, wintry landscape the rally is famous for.

But the snow finally arrived yesterday evening and a local resident said today that more was expected over the coming days. "The forecast shows more snow almost every day between now and next week," he said. "Near the stages the temperature is expected to be somewhere between -4 degrees and +2 degrees - which should mean the snow will pack down nicely."

The Uddeholm Swedish Rally starts at 2004hrs on Thursday 7 February with a Superspecial stage in host town, Karlstad.