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Sochi before the Olympics
Mikhail Mordasov
In February and March 2014, the city of Sochi will host the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games.
For the Kremlin the Olympics are an opportunity to demonstrate their ability to organize major events and burnish the country’s international image. “It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity” Russian officials say, “We’re building not just an international winter sports destination and year-round resort, we are building new standards for the country as a whole”. Work continues 24 hours a day to finish construction with glazed new Olympic venues being built both in Sochi and the nearby Caucasus Mountains.
But this transformation has also come at a cost to many Sochi residents. Some families displaced for Olympic construction have lost their homes without compensation. In some villages, landslides threaten residents’ health and safety.
Environmental experts warn that the construction is damaging the fragile local ecosystem of the surrounding Sochi National Park. International Human rights organizations keep reporting serious human rights abuses linked to the 2014 Sochi Olympics.