Extreme European temperatures likened to 'doping' in sport 

People skiing on a slope in Filzmoos south of Salzburg, Austria, on Thursday, January 5, illustrating sparse snowfall and unseasonably warm weather in much of Europe. Picture: AP Photo/Matthias Schrader

Record-breaking high temperatures across Europe in recent days have been boosted by greenhouse gases, akin to a sportsperson doping where natural ability is boosted artificially.

That is according to the secretary general of the World Meterological Organisation (WMO) as he attempted to explain how temperatures of more than 25C were seen in the Basque region on New Year's Day, nearly 19C in Poland's capital Warsaw, and more than 19C in the German city of Dresden on New Year's Eve.