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Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, currently on a working visit to Slovakia, meets with International Ice Hockey Federation President Rene Fasel

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Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:

Vladimir Putin: Dear Mr Fasel, thank you very much for your invitation. I am closely following the current ice hockey world championships. But the aim of my visit is not to attend the tournament – something I would have really loved to do – but to find out the outcome of the vote on the bids to host the 2016 Ice Hockey World Championships.

You know our country and its capabilities quite well, don't you? I imagine that the voting process is almost done by now, and I hope ours will be the winning bid.

You've been president of the International Ice Hockey Federation for almost two decades now, and you've made a great contribution over those years to the development of ice hockey worldwide. And you're well aware of Russia's love affair with ice hockey, a sport that has millions of fans in our country.

Rene Fasel (speaking via interpreter): Dear Mr Putin. To us, the International Ice Hockey Federation, it's a great honour to have you here. We know you're a serious sports fan. The whole world knows about your extensive support for sports. The two of us met for the first time in Moscow back in 1999, during your first term as prime minister. You said an ice hockey arena had just been completed in St Petersburg, and we went over there to attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony. As far as I remember, your team played in the opening match, but it didn't perform its best that day, unfortunately.

Since that time, we've built a good, professional relationship, and have been working together for the benefit of sports. I hope we'll meet again in Sochi in 2014.

Thank you for your efforts in Sochi; they are outstanding, as is your personal commitment to the process [of preparing for the Sochi Olympics]. This would not have been possible without your support. Thank you for this.