Sochi’s bid for the 2014 Winter Olympic Games has received a boost with news that the Russian government has approved Sochi 2014’s USD 11.7 billion development program of the Sochi region over the next eight years.
Mikhail Fradkov, the Chairman of the Russian Federation, signed a resolution approving in principle the Federal Target Programme (FTP) for the Development of Sochi – 2006-2014, ensuring its inclusion in Sochi 2014’s questionnaire which was submitted to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Lausanne on January 26, six days ahead of schedule. Details of the questionnaire will be made public on February 2.
The FTP encompasses USD 11.7 billion of work being done between 2006 and 2014, which includes the cost of organizing and hosting the 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Sixty percent (USD 6.8 billion) is public funding and 40 per cent (USD 5.2 billion) will come from the private sector.
Under the program Sochi will be upgraded to a year-round, world-class resort. The bid committee says the initiative is also a huge boost to the regional economy, which will create a “significant number of new jobs for the local population”. It also represents an “exhaustive” effort to provide all the necessary infrastructure and resources needed to host the Games.
Russian President Vladimir Putin told a Kremlin news conference “Sochi is the perfect place. It has a mild climate, the sea is near and there are places with snow all year round in the mountains”.
He also noted that “the Krasnodar region is developing very well, and looks more preferable against the background of other regions”. Qualified personnel are concentrated there, and the region has traditions, good infrastructure and favourable climate.
