Izvestia: "Did you order a taxi to the Olympics?"
Vladimir Putin takes IOC Chairman for a ride on Sochi's new road.
The visit of high-ranking International Olympic officials to Sochi ended with a display of admiration.
During the previous such visit in April 2008, the guests were shown cardboard mock-ups of the houses and the hosts waxed enthusiastic about "how everything would be fine". The Olympic experts let their imaginations run wild, exclaiming, "This is fantastic!" A year later, the IOC officials could see through the plane windows the port under construction and the railway track leading to it. They took a drive on a stretch of the bypass road, made even more special by the fact that the driver was Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
Looking at the Chairman of the Sochi 2014 Coordinating Commission, Jean-Claude Killy, one can't help feeling that he was a little dazed by the drive along Sochi's mountain roads. But it was not only the roads, judging from the way he praises our legendary hospitality each time he visits Sochi. He is an old hand at his job, but this time he was in for a surprise. Vladimir Putin himself decided to give him a ride on a stretch of the bypass road between Dzhubga and Sochi to drive away any doubts that the Olympic officials might have: what was a cardboard mockup last year is very real today.
The Prime Minister and Mr Killy sped over the 8-km stretch of completed road. With Mr Putin driving, his passenger was able enjoy the wide road (four lanes is a far cry from the narrow Kurortny Prospekt, which is impossible to navigate without a police blinker on top of the vehicle). The Prime Minister took his guest to the most interesting point on the new road, the third section of the Dzhubga-Sochi road. He expertly parked the Mercedes, undid the safety belt (the Prime Minister is a stickler for rules) and invited Mr Killy to take a short walk.
Near a small tent by the roadside the guests were greeted by Transport Minister Igor Levitin, who showed them the scheme of road construction in the Olympic capital. By 2013 Sochi will have two more roads in addition to Kurortny Prospekt and the bypass road. The Transport Minister had everything thought out and proposed to mark the roads in different colours, number them, and, similarly to metro lines, give them the names "red", "green", "blue". One could refer to them either by numbers or by colour.
"The main thing is that it shouldn't be window-dressing; everything should be real," Mr Putin summed up, then bid everyone goodbye, jumped behind the wheel, fastened his safety belt, and was off.
The IOC officials stayed back, although they had received answers to all their questions the day before straight from the horse's mouth, when Vladimir Putin and his Olympic team (Olympic Deputy Premier Dmitry Kozak, President of the Olympstroi state-owned corporation Victor Kolodyazhny, Krasnodar Territory Governor Alexander Tkachev, and other officials) met with the Olympic Committee top rank officials.
"The work is under tight control and we are progressing on schedule," Vladimir Putin said. Assembly and building work will begin at all the sites this year. It is already underway at 21 sites. By 2012, the Olympic facilities should be ready for test competitions."
The Prime Minister told Jean-Claude Killy that the first railway reaching the Olympic construction site was built last year. It will deliver materials and equipment and work in the cargo handling area of the Sochi seaport will begin shortly.
"Practically the entire logistical structure for massive construction will be in place," he summed up. Vladimir Putin did not forget the controversial projects that had to be moved at the insistence of the environmentalists, or about the disgruntled citizens of the Imeretinskaya Valley whose houses will be demolished. The residents were offered a wide choice (get an apartment, a plot of land, or monetary compensation), but things are not going smoothly. Many said they would settle only for an "equal exchange", a house of the same size on a similar plot of land and within the same distance from the sea, which is of course an impossible condition to fulfill.
Vladimir Putin anticipated the uncomfortable question about the crisis and finances:
"Let me note that in spite of some financial and economic difficulties, Olympic construction projects will be funded in a timely manner. The Russian financial reserves secure the budget against any problems, which guarantees a hundred percent fulfillment of all the work."
"That the city is changing dramatically can be seen from the plane," Killy nodded as soon as he was given the floor. "One can see the building of the marine cargo port and the railway networks. I am profoundly satisfied. Organizing the Olympics that range along the railway is something unique; it has never happened anywhere in the world before."
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The first Sochi 2014 Olympic gold
The first Olympic record was set long before the start of the Olympic Games ... by sponsors. The first partners of the Organizing Committee of Sochi-2014 signed a $260 million partnership contract. In addition, they are planning to invest more than $200 million in the development of the city and regional infrastructure, bringing the total investments to about $500 million, a record high in the history of Olympic Games.
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"In spite of the financial and economic difficulties, everything connected with the Olympics will be financed in a timely manner."
Anastasia Savinykh
