IOC co-ordination commission chief Jean-Claude Killy, who warned last year that construction delays could hinder the build-up to the Games, said on Wednesday that he was delighted with the Russian resort’s work.
“As far as we are concerned, and according to our experts, everything is going according to plan,” said Killy, speaking at the end of a three-day inspection tour, the co-ordination commission’s fifth visit to Sochi. “I wouldn't have said that last year.”
Killy added: “We have seen colossal progress in the preparations for the Olympics. I am impressed by the construction process and people are working 24 hours a day, seven days a week.” The local organising committee has assured the IOC that 70% of the construction work will be completed by next year, with the bobsled run expected to open in February.
Meanwhile contractors building facilities for the 2014 Olympics have signed up to follow UN recommendations on preserving the ecosystem of a local river. Signatories to the document on restoring the ecosystem of the Mzymta River included Russian gas giant Gazprom and the country’s railway monopoly, with officials of the UN Environment Program (UNEP) in attendance for the signing ceremony.
Dmitry Chernyshenko, president of the Sochi-2014 organising committee, said international expert examinations of the environment in the area have been a “unique asset” for Russia.
