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Russian president opens Sochi 2014 Olympic ski center

Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday opened a ski center that will be used in the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, calling it a good start for the many construction projects needed for the Games.

"This is the first sign of the preparations of Sochi as host of the 2014 Winter Olympics," Putin told jumpsuit-clad workers who built new ski lifts and other facilities at the at the complex in Krasnaya Polyana near Sochi, a Black Sea resort in southern Russia. "We still must put up a large quantity of sports facilities here at Krasnaya Polyana. I'm sure this will be done on schedule and with the same quality as this one."

Putin rode a new gondola up the Psekhako Ridge, drank tea with 1994 Olympic super-G silver medalist Svetlana Gladysheva and mingled with young skiers.

'PLEASANT GIFT'

Putin called the project, funded entirely by the state-controlled natural gas monopoly OAO Gazprom, "a pleasant gift not only for professionals but for the wider public -- everyone who loves active leisure."

The ski area on the Psekhako Ridge now consists of 18 trails and six lifts including the gondola, as well as accommodations for more than 8,000 people, said Vladimir Makarenkov, deputy director of a Gazprom affiliate involved in the construction.

"That's just the start," Makarenkov said on NTV.

A ski stadium and other facilities, including more trails and lifts, are to be built on the 129-hectare site, he said.

ROSA KHUTOR

Cross-country and biathlon events will take place at Psekhako Ridge, while alpine ski events are to be held at a separate area called Rosa Khutor, which is under construction.

Putin said that for Russia to produce as many champion athletes as possible, "it's necessary to learn to build such sports centers and maintain them properly."

Construction of the facilities at Psekhako Ridge started in 2002 and much of what has been built was completed in late 2006, the ITAR-Tass news agency reported.

Sochi was awarded the games in July, defeating Pyeongchang, South Korea, and Salzburg, Austria, in a vote of the International Olympic Committee.
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