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Even with more time, more federal help and technical advances, REAL ID still faces stiff opposition from civil liberties groups.

Among other details of the REAL ID plan:

_The traditional driver’s license photograph would be taken at the beginning of the application instead of the end so that should someone be rejected for failure to prove identity and citizenship, the applicant’s photo would be kept on file and checked in the future if that person attempted to con the system again.

_The cards will have three layers of security measures but will not contain microchips as some had expected. States will be able to choose from a menu which security measures they will put in their cards.

And these are just the young women who want to be chosen to carry the medals to the prize-giving ceremonies at this summer’s Beijing Olympics.

Yesterday, some of these young hopefuls – all training at the Changping vocational high school to the north of the capital – were introduced to the press.

The determination of the authorities to ensure perfection in every detail of the Games on which they have staked their own and the nation’s reputation was on very obvious display.

Girls bidding to become “Olympic hostesses” are carefully selected, according to official from the Beijing Olympic Games Organising Committee.

They are all roughly the same height – five foot six to five foot seven and a half.

They are all good-looking, and they all have “good physique”, a point picked on by delighted Chinese newspapers who are reporting that big bottoms had been banned.

They have a maximum weight – eight stone nine pounds – and the ratio of their upper to lower bodies must be 11:13.

They are also drilled with military precision.

The 32 chosen to parade in the high school gymnasium yesterday, all aged 16-19, marched in step, sometimes carrying trays with practice bottles of water, sometimes making in unison elaborate hand gestures intended to direct imaginary spectators to their seat.