RUSSIA: OLYMPICS - President Vladimir Putin slaloms down Sochi ski slopes to support the city's bid for the 2014 Winter Olympics

Russian President Vladimir Putin slaloms down Sochi ski slopes to support the city's bid for the 2014 Winter Olympics. As evaluation gets underway for Sochi's 2014 Winter Olympics bid, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday (February 20) shows the world just how much the games mean to him. Normally hard at work in Moscow's Kremlin, Putin swooped into the southern Black Sea resort two hours away by plane to underscore his determination to host the 2014 Games. His presence coincides with the visit of the International Olympic Committee, whose 16 members arrived the day before for a week of evaluation. Their findings will be decisive towards the choice of which city to host the 2014 Games - the two other final candidates are Salzburg in Austria and Pyeongchang in South Korea. Clad in red ski gear and accompanied by children from the local ski school, the Russian President slalomed down the powdery slopes of Krasnaya Polyanna in front of world media. "Hello. A lot has been built, good skilifts, I could say they are fantastic, and they have made some good slopes," Putin, an avid skier, told reporters invited to watch him on the ski slope. "In terms of natural conditions, we are better than a lot of European resorts. And here we have the opportunity for development and that is development on complete new foundation, on the basis of 21st century technology, and we are capable of doing it better," said Putin. Sochi, in southern Russia, has long been a favoured holiday destination for Russia's elite and for sun-starved package tourists, 3 million of whom visit annually. It is also the warmest city in Russia. However, Russia's ambitious bid to host the Games in the resort has run into trouble with environmentalists, who say organisers are planning to build an Olympic bobsleigh run in an area inhabited by bears. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has written to Putin demanding he intervene to save Sochi's national park. It is home to red deer, wild boar and numerous other species. It is also adjacent to another world heritage site in the snowy Caucasus mountains, which enjoy special Unesco status. Putin stressed the environment should be taken into consideration. "We under no circumstances should permit any damage to the environment in this area, because it is indeed our national wealth. We should find a balance between the interests of those who want to pratise sports, winter sports and relax and those who want to protect the nature."," the Russian President says. Russia has never hosted a Winter Olympics. If the bid is successful, it has promised to transform Sochi, replacing crumbling Soviet-era facilities with new hotels, a new international airport and a high-speed railway. The bid has a slogan: "Gateway to the Future" and a logo of a star-shaped snowflake.

ITN Source | February 23, 2007

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