Sochi Olympic Games to open at 8.14pm today

The Fisht Stadium in Sochi will open the 22nd Winter Olympic Games at 8.14pm today. Russian President Vladimir Putin has recently said that Sochi was chosen as the location for the Games in 2001. The name of the person who will light the Olympic Flame that will burn for 16 days remains a secret. About 3,000 athletes from 88 countries, 6 countries more than during the Vancouver Games, will compete for 98 medal packages in 15 disciplines of 7 types of sports. This is 36 medal packages more than ever before.

Sochi was elected as the Olympic host in Guatemala on June 4, 2007. All the infrastructure planned has been completed and prepared for the Games.Andrey Petrov, head of the analytical section for studies of the Caucasus at the MSU Center for Information and Analysis, said that the Olympic Games were a project of the century and a response to the economic and political challenges of modern history. He reminded that it will also be an opportunity, as Azerbaijani and Armenian Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Serzh Sargsyan will be in Sochi and the Games will bring peace to the Azerbaijani-Armenian contact line. The expert added that a delegation from Georgia had arrived for the Olympic Games, despite differences with Russia.

Alexey Lyalchenko, the expert Andrey Petrov’s deputy, noted that the Olympic Games could become a moment for consolidation of Russians. He reminded that the older generation had been telling young people about the Moscow Olympic Games of 1980 with heartfelt warmth.

The Fisht Stadium in Sochi will open the 22nd Winter Olympic Games at 8.14pm today. Russian President Vladimir Putin has recently said that Sochi was chosen as the location for the Games in 2001. The name of the person who will light the Olympic Flame that will burn for 16 days remains a secret. About 3,000 athletes from 88 countries, 6 countries more than during the Vancouver Games, will compete for 98 medal packages in 15 disciplines of 7 types of sports. This is 36 medal packages more than ever before.Sochi was elected as the Olympic host in Guatemala on June 4, 2007. All the infrastructure planned has been completed and prepared for the Games.Andrey Petrov, head of the analytical section for studies of the Caucasus at the MSU Center for Information and Analysis, said that the Olympic Games were a project of the century and a response to the economic and political challenges of modern history. He reminded that it will also be an opportunity, as Azerbaijani and Armenian Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Serzh Sargsyan will be in Sochi and the Games will bring peace to the Azerbaijani-Armenian contact line. The expert added that a delegation from Georgia had arrived for the Olympic Games, despite differences with Russia.Alexey Lyalchenko, the expert Andrey Petrov’s deputy, noted that the Olympic Games could become a moment for consolidation of Russians. He reminded that the older generation had been telling young people about the Moscow Olympic Games of 1980 with heartfelt warmth.