International Olympic Committee : News

Sochi 2014: A lasting resort

4/25/2013 11:06:00 AM

While the eyes of the world will be on Sochi in less than a year’s time, many are already looking even further ahead, at the long-term benefits of hosting the Olympic Winter Games. Russia hopes that Sochi 2014 will not only turn the city on the Black Sea into a world-class resort but also help create a new social environment and inspire a future generation of champions.

(Copyright: KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP/Getty Images)

Holding the Winter Games in the summer resort, better known for sunbathing than for cross country skiing or snowboarding, received support from Russian President Vladimir Putin to showcase the country’s ability to organise major sporting events.

Sochi was not widely known outside of Russia before the city won the right to host the Games at the IOC Session in July 2007. Even after Sochi had won the bid, some critics cast doubt over its ability to stage a successful Games because it had to build almost all the infrastructure, including roads, hotels, a major airport and sporting venues, from scratch.

Now, with just under a year remaining before the Olympic cauldron is lit at the 40,000-seat Fisht Stadium, most of the venues in both the coastal and mountain clusters are nearly completed. In addition to the main Olympic stadium, a coastal cluster, located in the Olympic Park near the city centre, will house arenas for ice hockey, figure skating, speed skating and curling, as well as the Main Media Centre and International Broadcast Centre.

The mountain cluster

The mountain cluster, located in Krasnaya Polyana, approximately 40km from Sochi, will stage all the ski and snowboard events, cross country skiing, biathlon, bobsleigh, luge and ski jumping. “Our task is not only to deliver an innovative Olympic Winter Games, but also to build a city of the future that sets a precedent for the whole of Russia,” said Sochi 2014 President and CEO Dmitry Chernyshenko.

Sochi Mayor Anatoly Pakhomov was also confident the Games would leave a long-lasting legacy on his city. “For our city, the Project Sochi 2014 is not only a chance to host the Olympic Winter Games but more importantly a great impetus to revive and rebuild the whole urban infrastructure,” he said. “After the completion of the Games, Sochi will become a year-round world-class resort.”

Additional benefits for the Sochi region

The Games should also bring other benefits to the Sochi region. The federal government is helping the construction of special reservoirs for the biological waste and water purification that, according to experts, will prevent pollution and improve the environmental situation around Sochi, where many houses, just like in many other Russian cities, do not have basic sewage facilities or working plumbing. The Games have also helped create 560,000 new jobs, while the Olympic hosts are drafting nearly 25,000 volunteers to help the Organising Committee, creating a whole new volunteering culture in Russia. “The response for volunteers has been overwhelming as we have received more than 150,000 applications from all across Russia as well as abroad,” said Chernyshenko. “It has become a very competitive programme, almost like getting into a prestigious university.”

“When Sochi began the bidding process in 2005, the concept of volunteering simply did not exist in Russia,” he said. “Now, the volunteer movement is thriving, with a quarter of a million Russians regularly participating in volunteer activity. In the 2012 World Giving Index, for the first time ever, Russia was listed as one of the top ten countries for time spent volunteering, with 21 million volunteers. “Most importantly, tens of thousands of generous people will have the opportunity to become a part of the Sochi 2014 Games as volunteers. This will be an invaluable experience for them, and one that they will be able to pass on to the future generation of volunteers in Russia.”

A much-improved infrastructure

Just like the volunteering, the Games have also opened new frontiers for disabled people in the region, with all the Olympic venues, as well as more than 50 per cent of the Sochi streets, being made accessible for people with disabilities. Sochi’s much-improved infrastructure will allow the city to stage several major international events, including hosting the country’s first Formula One Grand Prix in 2014, the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup and the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Sochi also plans to hold a major annual cycling race, called the Tour of Russia, starting from 2014. The race – a smaller version of the famous Tour de France three-week marathon – will start in St Petersburg, continue to Moscow, before the riders fly to Sochi for another three or four days climbing through the Caucasus mountains.

In addition to already existing facilities, the Russian government will spend nearly USD 200 million to build a motor racing circuit around the Olympic Park after signing a seven-year deal with Formula One commercial boss Bernie Ecclestone. “It [Formula One] fits perfectly with the Winter Games as it could use all the hotels and other infrastructure that would be built here by 2014,” President Putin said during the signing ceremony in 2010.

With improved infrastructure, new facilities and major events such as the F1 Grand Prix and the FIFA World Cup turning Sochi into a year-round resort destination, it’s clear that the benefits of the 2014 Winter Games will be felt long after the Olympic flame is extinguished.

Sochi set to enjoy long-term benefits of new Olympic Park

1/24/2013 3:50:00 PM

The Park is home to the Fisht Olympic Stadium, Bolshoi Ice Dome, Iceberg Skating Palace, Shayba Arena, Ice Cube Curling Centre and Adler Arena, which form the “coastal cluster” of Games venues.

Sochi 2014 will be the first time in Olympic history that all the ice venues are within walking distance of one another, creating a centralised Olympic Park. The Park will also house the Main Olympic Village, the International Broadcasting Centre and the Main Press Centre.

All the venues have been constructed with post-Games use in mind, with many of the permanent facilities set to provide a lasting legacy for Sochi – and Russia as a whole.

“In Sochi we’re already seeing the amazing transformation that sport and hosting major sport events can bring,” says Sochi 2014 President and CEO Dmitry Chernyshenko. “The Games are a powerful catalyst to both develop key infrastructure and make changes in Russian society. We’ve dedicated ourselves to thinking long-term, to focus on a true Games legacy that will not only rejuvenate the city of Sochi, but will also contribute to the economic, cultural and environmental development of the Krasnodar region.”

After the Games, the 40,000-seat Fisht Olympic Stadium, which will host the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, is set become a major international football stadium, while the 8,000-seat Adler Arena, which will stage speed skating during Sochi 2014, will be turned into the largest trade and exhibition centre in the south of Russia. The Bolshoi Ice Dome, meanwhile, will be converted into a multi-purpose sports and entertainment venue.

Elsewhere in the Park, the Iceberg Palace, which will host figure skating and short track speed skating during the Games, could be transformed into a velodrome, according to Russia’s Deputy Minister of sports Yury Nagornyh, while the Shayba Arena and Ice Cube Curling Centre are both due to be dismantled and transported to other Russian cities.

“Modern international sports venues will be a lasting legacy that will benefit future generations,” explains Chernyshenko. “The various sports venues that are being built in Sochi will collectively form a new international sports centre with modern infrastructure including an international airport, hotels, business centres and concert halls. Some of the newly-built sports venues will be transformed into multi-purpose concert-entertainment centres after the Games and others will be dismantled and transported to other cities in Russia.”

Sochi’s array of glistening new facilities will also allow the city to stage several other major international events after the Games, including the 2018 FIFA World Cup, which will see matches being played in the Fisht Olympic Stadium, and Russia’s first Formula One Grand Prix, which will take place on a track located in the Olympic Park, beginning in 2014.

Sochi 2014’s mountain venues set to provide lasting legacy

1/22/2013 1:51:00 PM

Located in Krasnaya Polyana, approximately 40km from Sochi, the newly-built mountain venues will be home to all the skiing and sliding sports during Sochi 2014. After the Games, many of the venues will continue to host major international competitions, such as World Cup events, while also providing modern facilities for the region.

The RusSki Gorki Jumping Centre, Sanki Sliding Centre and Rosa Khutor Extreme Park, for example, will all become national training centres, providing world-class facilities for Russia’s next generation of Olympians.

The Rosa Khutor Alpine Centre, meanwhile, which will host the Alpine skiing events during Sochi 2014, will become part of a major new ski resort.

Prior to its successful bid for the Games, Sochi was more widely known as one of Russia’s most popular summer holiday resorts, but the new facilities that have been constructed – such as those at Rosa Khutor – will see it become an important winter destination as well.

"The key achievement of the Sochi Winter Games will be that Sochi is no longer regarded simply as a summer resort, but as a place where people can visit all year round,” said Sochi mayor Anatoly Pakhomov in November 2012. “Sochi has 300 days of sunshine a year. It has a unique sub-tropical climate, so in March and April you can come skiing here and still find people sunbathing on the coast. It can be 10 or 15 degrees below freezing in Krasnaya Polyana and 15 degrees on the coastline.”

"This is really a unique place,” Pakhomov added. “Sochi has always had the capacity to be an all-round resort, not just the most popular Russian summer resort. We never had the infrastructure or the conditions to make it happen before – but the Winter Games have prompted us to take that opportunity.”

Previously, the limited infrastructure in the mountains of the Krasnaya Polyana region made it difficult for visitors to take advantage of the excellent skiing conditions.

As a result of hosting the Winter Games, however, a high-speed train line has been built – linking the region with Sochi – while a new resort has also been developed in Rosa Khutor, with shops, restaurants and international hotel chains all due to open in the coming months. After the Games, it is hoped that Rosa Khutor will become a major ski destination for both Russian and overseas holidaymakers – providing another long-lasting legacy from the Games.

Jacques Rogge: "Early legacy planning key to producing long-term benefits"

11/21/2012 8:00:00 AM

The final Olympic Games of my 12-year term as president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) were received with great fanfare this summer in London. Evidence of their success continues to reach me almost daily in the form of the question: “Were they the best Games in history?”

As much as it would please me to simply answer in the affirmative, I know such a response would be premature. My reply is always the same: “Let history be the judge.”

I say this not to take anything away from the thousands of people responsible for delivering London 2012, which was clearly an across-the-board success, but to draw attention to the considerable importance the IOC places on legacy – what an Olympic host city leaves behind long after the 16 days of sporting competition are over.

The Olympic Games are the largest sporting event in the world and for most host cities they are the biggest and most complex project they will ever undertake. Their organisation affects the whole of the city and its population and often includes urban, economic, social and environmental development that requires the broad and cohesive involvement of city leaders, regional and national authorities, Games organisers, local communities, commercial partners and all the members of the Olympic Movement.

The IOC actively encourages each city that bids for an Olympic Games to consider from the outset how they could utilize the event to bring positive, long-lasting benefits to its area and citizens. This sort of planning typically begins a decade before the start of a Games.

By the time Chairman of the London 2012 bid committee Sebastian Coe spoke at the host city election in Singapore in 2005, for example, the London organisers already had a firm and highly detailed vision for what they wanted to deliver in 2012 and beyond.

It included the regeneration of a massive industrial wasteland in East London, providing the local community with world-class sporting venues to train and compete in, new parks and residential areas, better transport connections and infrastructure, employment and business opportunities, sustainable construction, an increase in volunteerism, and the creation of the next generation of sporting champions by inspiring young people everywhere to become more involved in physical activity.

The organisation of the London 2012 Games themselves cost around 2 billion pounds, much of which was covered by the IOC and private funds. But the local authorities earmarked a further 9.3 billion pounds to leverage the Games as a catalyst for rapid city development and improvement, both tangible and intangible, that would otherwise have taken decades to achieve.

London 2012 has already delivered on many of its promises and by continuing to pursue others we are optimistic that the citizens of London will benefit from the Games long into the future.

The foundations for London’s achievements in this area were firmly built on the knowledge and expertise of past Olympic Games organisers. Massive urban regeneration projects undertaken by Barcelona 1992 and Sydney 2000, environmental and sustainability standards set by Lillehammer 1994 and Vancouver 2010, and programmes to encourage volunteerism and youth participation by Beijing 2008 are just a few of the success stories from past organisers that London used as a springboard for its own Games.

As the link between past, present, and future host cities, the IOC assists Games organisers through a comprehensive transfer of knowledge programme. Organisers of upcoming Games in Russia (Sochi 2014), Brazil (Rio 2016), and South Korea (PyeongChang 2018) are already benefitting from the programme, which includes an important debriefing that the IOC organises to give future host cities a comprehensive look at what worked well at previous Olympic Games and what could be improved.

This year it was London’s turn to pass the torch at the London 2012 Debriefing in Rio de Janeiro from 17-21 November. The Debriefing focused on all aspects of Games operations, from the moment a bid city wins the right to host a Games to long after the Games conclude. These meetings were also attended by representatives of the 2020 candidate cities Istanbul, Tokyo and Madrid, as well as other stakeholders responsible for staging the Games.

The London organisers had a great deal to pass on to their successors, who were given crucial insight into, among other things, producing and remaining focused on a long-term vision for their Games, the importance of collaboration between all parties during the planning and preparation phases, and ways to integrate the public into the event.

The Debriefing is by no means meant to provide a cookie-cutter template for future hosts. Rather, it is intended to provide valuable lessons that host cities can adopt and adapt to fit their own unique circumstances. We encourage upcoming Games organisers to innovate and expand on what they learn and ultimately improve upon the best practices of their predecessors.

London managed to do exactly that in preparing for and delivering the Games of the XXX Olympiad. It may still be too soon to call them the greatest Games ever, but ask the same question again in 20 years and you might just get a “yes.”

Behind the Scenes at London 2012: Jacques Rogge

8/13/2012 11:05:00 AM

How are you feeling now that the Games have concluded?
I am a very happy and grateful man; very happy with the London 2012 Olympic Games and very grateful to the London Organising Committee (LOCOG) for delivering an incredible Games.

Can you describe your most special moment?
There are so many special moments and so many incredible athletes it is difficult to pick just one: Andy Murray winning gold at Wimbledon, Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps excelling in their fields and, as a sailor, I had great pleasure watching Ben Ainslie (GBR). I was also delighted to witness some of the Youth Olympic Games athletes from Singapore 2010 compete at their first Olympic Games, many of whom won medals, such as South African swimmer Chad le Clos.

For me, one of the most defining moments of the Games was the tears of Chris Hoy on winning his sixth gold medal in his home nation. For a sportsman like myself, the last 16 days have been a dream for me.

Has London 2012 inspired the next generation of sporting talent?
London 2012 put the athletes at the heart from the very beginning when they won the Games in Singapore in 2005. It is the athletes who will inspire the next generation. We have witnessed sporting beauty in action during these Olympic Games, moments that will inspire young people watching the Olympic Games, not only in the home nation but around the world. The people are an important legacy of the Games - a lot of youngsters will have been motivated by the role models they have seen on their screens to go to their local sports clubs and practise sport.

How has London 2012 helped the Olympic Movement?
I would say London has invigorated the Olympic Games in many respects. Not only did LOCOG deliver what it promised, but it ensured that the Games were perfect for the athletes, from the fantastic athlete’s village to the state-of-the-art venues and services. The atmosphere here in London has been unforgettable, the public reaction was exceptional and the volunteers, who are the unsung heroes of the Games, were efficient and always gave the warmest of welcomes.

What do you think has been the legacy of London 2012?
LOCOG identified from the outset the importance of legacy and a producing a sustainable Olympic Games and it has demonstrated this with the regeneration of east London and clever use of temporary venues.
In terms of human legacy, London 2012 aimed to inspire the next generation and this has undoubtedly been achieved.

What lessons can be learnt from London 2012 for future host cities?
Future host cities can learn so much from London 2012, but like the athletes, we constantly strive to improve on our last performance. In November there will be a debriefing session in Rio, Brazil, where the two host cities (London 2012 and Rio 2016) will come together to go through all aspects of the organisation and share knowledge. No Games are ever perfect; we always aim to improve and together we will succeed.

Benefits of hosting London 2012 will be ongoing

8/12/2012 8:00:00 AM

The regeneration of East London and particularly Stratford, the site of the Olympic Park, will bring untold benefits to the area and the local communities that live there.

The Olympic Park will be transformed into the Queen Elizabeth Country Park, and the permanent venues within it will bring new leisure facilities to the area. The increased focus on the area brought by the Games coupled with an improvement in transport links and the new shopping centre next to the Park will bring greater visitor numbers and continued investment to the borough.

Permanent venues such as the Velodrome and the Aquatics centre will not only offer affordable facilities to encourage residents of the capital to get involved in sporting activities, they will also have the facilities to host world-class events. These will attract further tourism to London providing an ongoing boost for businesses operating in the capital.

The sporting legacy created by the Games will also have a lasting impact on the capital and its residents. London 2012 has generated a lot of interest in sport and a number of initiatives are already in place to capitalise on the enthusiasm generated and encourage people to get involved.

Mayor of London Boris Johnson described this week how London must continue the momentum created by the Games to secure a lasting legacy for the capital. “We can secure a transport, housing, infrastructure, sporting, cultural and social legacy from these Games and turn these Games to gold for decades to come,” he added.

London 2012 venue legacy ensured for years to come

8/10/2012 12:57:00 PM

The venues for the Games have shown that it is possible to achieve high standards in areas such as sustainability, equality and inclusion, and business, jobs and training even for major construction projects such as this. The outcome of this will be a lasting legacy for the construction industry, whereby these new standards become the benchmark in the future.

The building of permanent venues for London 2012 was only approved if there was the potential for long-term use. These include the new Lee Valley White Water Centre, which will remain open as a canoe centre for the public and elite athletes, and the Velodrome within the Olympic Park, where plans are in place to reconfigure the track and a new mountain bike course and road cycle circuit will be added.

Where possible, LOCOG has incorporated or enhanced existing facilities and venues into its plan for hosting London 2012. The rowing course at Eton Dorney was already used by the local community and for international competitions, so only required minor improvements to make it suitable for competitions in the Olympic Games.

Likewise, Weymouth and Portland was already hosting world-class sailing events, but the improvements made for the Games will leave behind state-of-the-art facilities for elite training, competition and community use. A programme that introduces young people in the local area to take up sailing is already underway.

Other temporary venues were created at some of London’s best landmarks, such as the Beach Volleyball Venue at Horse Guards Parade and the Equestrian facilities in Greenwich Park. While these temporary constructions will be removed completely after the Games, the showcasing of some of the capital’s most famous and picturesque landmarks will provide a boost to tourism for years to come.

Rio 2016 contingent keen to learn from London’s experience

8/8/2012 8:00:00 AM

A team of 152 staff, all of whom will be participating in the IOC’s Observation Programme, and 51 representatives of different levels of government will share their learnings from the London event at a debriefing back in Rio in November 2012.

The team makes up roughly half of Rio 2016 and will carry out a variety of different functions during their time in London. Many will act as on-site ‘observers’, where they will learn about different operational practices involved in the staging of an Olympic Games, while others will participate as shadows of professionals of the London Organising Committee.

José Arthur Peixoto, responsible for the Observer Programme during the London Games, said in July: “The world’s eyes will turn to us right after the closing of the London Games. It is a very important moment from a strategic viewpoint. We will learn through the experience.”

Rio 2016 is already promising to be a fantastic Games, with plans for the transformation of the city already underway. Of the 34 competition venues, 18 are already operating and just 26 per cent of the sports venues will need to be built thanks to existing infrastructure in place from hosting previous international events.

Olympic Park will continue to transform East London

8/7/2012 11:26:00 AM

A £300m construction project run by the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) will transform the Olympic site into the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, due to open in phases from 27 July 2013.

The LLDC was established in 2009 and its development plans for the Olympic Park after the Closing Ceremony include removing temporary venues, transforming permanent venues into everyday use, building new roads and bridges and the first neighbourhood, all with the aim of furthering the regeneration that has already taken place in Stratford, East London.

The future of six of the eight permanent venues located in the Park has already been secured with appointed operators, and the stadiums will be modified to allow them to cater for the local community at a grass roots level, as well as continuing to host high performance events.

Up to 8,000 permanent jobs will have been created by 2030, plus 2,500 temporary construction jobs, and training and apprenticeship opportunities will focus on local people.

Another lasting legacy of the Olympic Park is the amount of green space that has been introduced to that area of London. It will leave behind over 22 miles of interlinking pathways, waterways and cycle paths and more than 250 acres of open space. By 2016, it is estimated that more than nine million visitors per year will visit the Queen Elizabeth Park.

Olympic Games legacy visible in everyday life

8/6/2012 1:54:00 PM

Organisers have also worked hard to use the Games as a catalyst for positive change and inspiration, creating new initiatives and programmes that will lead to sustainable social, economic and sporting legacies at home in the UK and around the world.

Since winning the bid to host the Olympic Games, the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) has worked tirelessly to ensure that athletes and sport are at the heart of the Games. With this agenda in mind, encouraging sports participation in the wider community has always been a key priority.

Initiatives include the 2012 National School Sports Week, which 14,000 schools and more than five million young people took part in earlier this year. Other commendable programmes include the London 2012 Inspire programme, which officially recognises outstanding projects and events inspired by the Games.

Meanwhile, ‘The Games and beyond’ emails are part of an initiative set up with Sport England, which provide London 2012 ticketholders with event information as well as details of how they can get involved and try out new sports once the Games are over.

London 2012 has also been used as a vehicle for connecting with vulnerable young people around the world and introducing them to sport. International Inspiration is a groundbreaking sports legacy programme that has initiated more than 900 sport-specific projects across every nation and region to develop sports participation and physical activity schemes for people of all ages. It has already helped more than 12 million young people in 20 countries, from Azerbaijan to Zambia, experience sport.

In recognition of the inclusive spirit of London 2012, the Games have provided thousands of Londoners from all ethnicities, ages and backgrounds with jobs and training during this extended period of economic uncertainty, leaving long-term social and economic benefits for London and the UK.

London 2012 will also have a lasting impact on businesses operating throughout the UK. Many of those awarded contracts to work on the Games will have had to adapt their supply chains and working practices, from improving their equality and inclusion or health and safety policies to developing new approaches to sustainable or accessible design. These elements will continue to be applied in their future work, having a positive impact on the working conditions of these industries.