Sydney was rocketed skywards in the realm of elite swimming facilities today at the media launch of a new altitude-bubble training camp at the Olympic Park that is being hailed as the first of its kind. 

In preparation for London 2012, Australian swimmers will train in two 25m pools inside a sealed canopy under which altitude conditions are replicated artificially at the new NSW Institute of Sport facility. 

The likes of James Magnussen, Geoff Huegill and Matt Abood were there to road test the system and felt that it would give them an edge come London 2012.

"The best thing about this technology is having it available and right at your fingertips, all the time," Huegill told reporters. "It is a bit of an effort to get over to Mexico or Flagstaff (Arizona) and the highest altitude training facilities we have in Australia is at Thredbo. So to be able to able to produce a tent that goes twice as high as Thredbo and get the same sort of result is something that I think the NSWIS has invested very well into."

Magnussen, world 100m freestyle champion, added: "It's definitely going to contribute (to the build up to London). I don't think this itself will be a gold medal winner but combine this with my training program I've got already, then we're definitely well on the way."