2014 Winter Paralympics

The 2014 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XXII Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, are an international winter multiple sports event that will be celebrated from February 7 to February 23, 2014.

The 2014 Winter Olympics will be held in both the city of Sochi and the mountains one hour’s drive away. While the coastal projects are still mostly on paper, the infrastructure is almost complete.

Set between the golden shores of the Black Sea and the soaring snow-capped Caucasus mountains, Sochi offers visitors a unique taste of coastal and mountain living, all with a distinct Russian flavor. Sochi is a treasure among winter sport enthusiasts, who return every year to explore its pristine alpine valleys and skiing trails.

Sochi is a multicultural city of 400,000 inhabitants representing more than 100 nationalities. Often referred to as the Russian Riviera, Sochi has a rich heritage as the nation’s major Black Sea port city, resort destination and a prominent cultural center.

The Alpine sports venues are located about an hour from the centre of Sochi around Krasnaya Polyana. At the moment they are linked by a single two-lane road with several tunnels, but soon a super highway will cut the journey time and the railway will take the strain.

The host city, Sochi, Russia, was elected on July 4, 2007, during the 119th International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session in Guatemala City, Guatemala. 2014 will be the first time Russia has hosted the Paralympics.

The composition of the Sochi 2014 Management, its regulations as well as the composition of the Supervisory Board were approved by the Presidential Council for the Development of Physical Culture and Sport, Excellence in Sports, and the Preparation and Execution of the 2014 XXII Olympic Winter Games and XI Paralympic Winter Games.

The dates for the 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Games are:

XXII Olympic Winter Games  Friday 7, February – Sunday, 23 February 2014
XI Paralympic Winter Games Friday, 7 March – Sunday, 16 March 2014

Even before Russia hosts its first ever Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, the Sochi 2014 is helping to open up the country’s culture, etiquette and business practices.

More than 150 IOC specialists and international experts specializing in inter-cultural collaboration met at the Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Switzerland, where the International Olympic Committee (IOC) staged a special seminar on the history and culture of the nation hosting the 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

The President and CEO of Sochi 2014, Dmitry Chernyshenko, presented a detailed report about all activities the Organizing Committee undertook in 2008, he also spoke about plans and key projects that will be implemented in 2009. In his speech he said:

“During the first year of the Organizing Committee’s work we not only followed all the recommendations of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), based on the experience of the previous Games, but also developed and implemented innovative solutions that will lead to an unprecedented legacy for the Olympic Movement. We have already commenced work on Sochi 2014’s 36 functional areas, and in 2009 we will launch 300 new projects. This exceeds the IOC’s expectations.”

During the meeting, Dmitry Mosin, the Sochi 2014 Vice President of strategic development, spoke about Sochi’s unique geographic and cultural nuances, the corporate culture of the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee and the project management structure for Russia’s national priority project. These type of seminars allow Sochi 2014 to build stronger bonds with the members of the Olympic Movement and help Winter Games organizers to answer questions about Russia and dispel some of the myths about the world’s largest country.

Over 4 km of new Olympic railway line are now in operation between the Matsesta and Khosta districts of Sochi. A further 3.2 km of line is due to be constructed during 2009 on the route, which will run 127 suburban trains per day during the Sochi 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Games – equating to one every 6-8 minutes.

The Olympic line forms part of a program of railway infrastructure reinforcement across Sochi - between the areas of Tuapse and Adler. A 15 billion ruble investment (over US$458 million), it will bring greatly enhanced passenger and cargo capacity by 2011, three years before Sochi 2014.

Further Information Regarding 2014 Winter Paralympics

Sochi 2014 Winter Games on Track
Sochi 2014 is fully on-track to deliver the highest quality facilities for athletes and officials and is about to embark on the second phase: the construction of the venues.

Sochi 2014 Reports on Winter Games Progress
The President and CEO of the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee, Dmitry Chernyshenko, has advised the President of the Russian Federation, Dmitry Medvedev, that Sochi 2014's cutting-edge volunteer, education and Home City programs will become internationally-renowned features of Russia’s first ever Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

Session Sees Olympic TOP Partners Impressed by Sochi 2014
The Organizing Committee of Sochi 2014 - Russia’s first ever Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games - today conducted a seminar for the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) global partners as part of its marketing program.

Sochi 2014 Wishes Vancouver 2010 Good Luck
Vladimir Lebedev, the team leader of Russia's acrobatic freestyle ski team has become a Sochi 2014 ambassador. Vladimir Lebedev, a bronze medalist at the Torino 2006 Olympic Games and a multiple World Cup medalist, will use his experience and knowledge to ensure that Sochi 2014 delivers excellent facilities for athletes as well as providing an unforgettable atmosphere at Russia’s first Winter Games.

Sochi 2014 Joins UNEP Climate Neutral Network
Sochi 2014 joined the United Nations Environment Program’s Climate Neutral Network (CN Net), an initiative to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions. The agreement reaffirms the commitment of the Organizing Committee for Russia’s first ever Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games to conserve and enhance the unique natural environment of Sochi and the Krasnodar region.

Violinist Yuriy Bashmet Announced as an Ambassador for Sochi 2014
World famous conductor and violinist Yuriy Bashmet was announced as an Ambassador for Sochi 2014, Russia’s first ever Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. The maestro was presented with a special diploma from the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee following the International Winter Music Festival, which takes place annually in the Black Sea coastal city.

Sochi 2014 Winter Games Shares Vancouvers Olympic Fever
With five years to go until Russia's first Winter Games, a high-level Sochi 2014 delegation is in Vancouver gaining key Olympic and Paralympic insights as Canada's Host City for the 2010 Winter Games enters its final year of preparations. The Opening Ceremony to Sochi 2014 will take place on 7 February 2014 and Vancouver 2010's curtain raiser will be on 12 February next year.

2014 Paralympic Games Sochi Russia Events and News
Information on sports events and preparations in the lead up to the 2014 Paralympic games in Sochi Russia. Construction of all the Olympic facilities in Sochi will begin this year, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Friday as he received Jean-Claude Killy, a member of the International Olympic Committee who chairs the Coordination Commission for the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi.

IOC Visits Sochi Before 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Games
A delegation from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) was today in the Black Sea coastal resort of Sochi for a working visit with organizers of the 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

International Freeride Competition for 2014 Winter Games
Sochi, the host of the 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, has welcomed the world’s finest extreme skiers and snowboarders as part of the Freeride World Tour 2009: the first competition of the high-octane international freeride season.