very very experience they have a lot of experience in. terrorism i think that they are going to do a good job to be unobtrusive out of the way. or stephen think oh thanks for the story about the few technical issues there. but . a little bit we talked about the security a big thing of course in the olympics is what people wear we can't go on without talking about that it's country that host the olympics goes out of its way to make it unique vasant is part of it they wanted to be memorable and to feel we have that with its own style and flavor you know sending their athletes to start she also wants a standard as well of course they want to put there by the flair of these games have another title going for as well let's talk fashion farmers check in with designs and labels of different teams a little kids. before these olympics even began they were breaking records they are the most expensive they will have the

most number of athletes and will have the most number of medals up for grabs but in my opinion they could also be remembered for being the most colorful this is the tracksuit for the volunteers if you get my drift and that's just for starters. the german athletes have turned up and these are popping garments kaleidoscopic toggle coats and their trials is aren't exactly toning down the outfit the american athletes got around for a run to design there is a dazzling cardigan the result and it should patchwork of stars and stripes big pockets then there's the bold pants of the norwegian men's curling team a sort of zigzag homage to their country's flag i haven't even mentioned the mexican skier you might not see prince you bertus on the podium but you won't see him on the slopes his skis see resembles a bleriot jacket and to exceed a striking costumes for striking gold they are literally to games brightest talents hundred. well it's all quite clear for the

athletes for them the olympic is a lifetime olympics i should say going to get used to saying that it's a lifetime dream and the main challenge and reward for years of their hard work so their focus will be on performing as well as they can of course sochi has provided a world class sporting facilities and hopefully everyone will really be happy with them so far so good at least from those we've heard from. work that grassroots talk about spectators because the poll was as well for them seeing the athletes competing cheering on their favorites is just part of the joy of course of visiting the games and the fun that it brings. first of all we have roads we have so many roads from the cd it's because before we had so much traffics now it's going to be much way better and here it looks in the village here it looks so much so cozy so nice i think i think what i heard from the

tourists they love it they just love here from afar so keep for many years. myself is the reason best in the world. so it's a big i yes so we are associates coming to bolster. six year old good strong nice healthy teams that they were stopped from a story that's my passion as i saw. the chance to walk around the olympic he's absolutely beautiful. maybe even got started last night. really well. being insecure now is good for many things to begin with you can bomb into celebrities who are here during the games as well talking to some of them online but we've been speaking to many of them here in the olympic city. amazing i mean i'm so blessed and i'm so happy to perform needs and i it's super nice it's so impressive rushed so she put up here i am i'm just in front of the olympic park so i'm in the black sea the same day as you can drive up and out against the best

slopes in the world. and no one really believes me and i hope that everyone be able to experience it somewhere and see all the big names talk to was great to see him as well as it is probably more to come to over the next three weeks or so. precious autograph or photograph for you to be busy over the next couple of days so what else do we do and can you do between the competition three months got into the turismo to explore sochi from their perspective. you've bought your tickets flown thousands of kilometers below hundreds of the globe and now you are in sochi for the twenty fourteen winter games so when you know watching the skiing hockey or skating what else is there to do well the purpose of a winter games in sochi is a tropical coastline on the black sea beaches and parks alongside monuments and museums allow you to take in a bit of history and experience a lifestyle the beach front is lined with local shops so grab

a souvenir while enjoying the views of the black sea and at night get your party shoes on because when they meet in lights are lit the bars and clubs come alive. that also hold a ski resort is lined with the european hotels restaurants and shops at least the one luxury hotel offers spiced up commendation just a step from the slopes yes enjoy stunning mountain views designer rooms and then on site spine health club. i went to see the best that money can buy what they need to look for i think is the person and it's what what what they want if you look for skiers you want to have a cozy hotel where you feel warm and relaxed in the evening that's what we can offer you here we have state of the art slopes we have state of the earth equipment connection infrastructures i think for for skiers it's just the perfect spot to choose finally some relegation and a spot treatment is a temptation for any skier visiting the black sea resort in

a bun or is just the place. haven't been in russia for a while i've never really been to a russian or what is also known as a russian sauna but now i'm in sochi and the world we congregated here during the winter games and i thought why not give it a try something traditional and russian so let's see if the british banja is using the right. sometimes equated to a turkish bath the by now experience is usually considered an indispensable pitstop on the journey to discover russian culture. when you first arrive there's a sense of serenity in the air incense burning meditation music in the background and a cup of herbal tea to come the body down the felde heads we're wearing a by your hats typically want to protect the heat from this intense heat of the sun . the misuse of friendly experienced and she has some health tips about what the

russian buying a does for the body the experience i'm lazy i also had one more treatment to test out this will become one of those places that all of the spectators athletes might want to visit another thought that i find myself in a big giant heart but this part would be a mounting one to bang with a insolent she might be. a very hot place to pray and ask me for what they'd associate of course with russia though i'm sure the first images of my will be banks of cold snow icicles took good bye to gold. and so a little bit of our. way this is one of very few places in russia where snow is not guaranteed not even in february for example right now the temperature in the coastal cluster is just a couple of degrees above zero it's into the double figures by day tropical winter

yes and i want to be a major concern for organizers so. you have enough of the white stuff to snow which of course essential for those outdoor sports let's direct that question to andrew farmer he's high up on the slopes. you know either you guys well if you were looking at the weather over the last couple of days you might be concerned because it actually has been very sunny and the snow for cost substantially forecasts the snow during the whole impacts but we shouldn't panic and that is because a huge amount of snow did fall in the run up to these guys. and in temperatures we are told should hover around your degrees and maybe just minus two minus three which should be enough to keep all that snow in place but if temperatures do rise and things start to melt there is an action plan a plan b. because the biggest snow making system in europe is now in place and basically there are four elements to it firstly tons of snow have been stored under special

blankets up on the mountains that snow is gathered from the snow fall from last year so if things start to melt that fresh snow why stay fresh now that real snow will be put on to the slopes and then that will be combined with artificial snow because there are also something like four hundred snow cannons up on the slopes they've been strategically placed in the rule to the local mountain lake so they will then make artificial snow if that's required we've also got a special glue on the snake that sounds very strange not keep it simple but this clearly has been placed just under the snow and it allows the snow to. create a grip on the slope this is all been told and so if things start to melt the snow should stay on the slight long longer than usual and also out there a snow gutters and these are placed high up on the peaks and they can transfer the snow that falls high up there and it's about seven thousand feet at its highest level at the roosevelt or peak that snow can then be transported down using the

snow you've got is the areas where it's needed so a lot of thought is going into this and it certainly has impressed the i.o.c. officials. there are some. doubts but there are a few years if you're wanting to go out to do it but that's nothing new you cannot control and no control and we had every olympics that day they remember we had some postponement of competitions because of fog or because of big snow for it complicates things but they can have everything that was absolutely nothing when they got there. their mother and it's an incredible job they did since then because what we did in the alps in the best and the. fifty use russia had to do we did in five or six years and it's incredible that they're ready now adays new infrastructure. so he's

a happy man and hopefully fingers crossed we should have plenty of snow the natural stuff or the artificial stuff if necessary. yeah it's good to hear such high praise from the president of the international ski federation there andy tell us what's in the mountain cluster that's drawn such an impression to figures like that. well if you imagine seven years ago there's nothing here it is just a bit pretty much a natural landscape but they're built apart from those who tour the ski village which you where i am at the moment a bell a pink thousand a pretty on which is just down the road from here with lots of hotels have also developed five major sporting venues the one which is closest to where i'm standing is the. ski jumping center that's basically being built on a ridge with looms over the sniper yana so if you stay in there you'll certainly get a good view of that and that actually has to ski jumps and the smaller one will be used by women for the first time it's the first time in olympic history that

they'll be competing in this event then not far from here also a little further up the mountain is the sankey sliding center and that's where the bobsled luge and the skeleton will take place it is in fact the designers say the safest sliding track in the world and that's because it has three little uphill sections to make sure that the riders don't actually go so fast and reach dangerous speeds and reaching for that is we had that tragic accident and the death of the georgian luger at the start of vancouver games in that same place and on a happier note. could also be the place where alexander zouk of the russian bobsled gets gold in the form and he had a bit of limelight today didn't he when he carried the flag during the russian flag during the ceremony so he hopes to get back into the limelight we don't have the roosevelt or alpine skiing center that's where the alpine skiing will take place that wins in the men's downhill as well as the slalom that's up at six thousand feet on a clear day you get splendid views at there of the black sea the course itself has

been described as very challenging and a bit of a leg burner so it should be very entertaining for the spectators at least and then we have the extreme park and that basically is where we're going to see the snow sporting in freestyle skiing snowboarding very into very entertaining to this lifestyle has just been introduced the olympic games this time around you'll see people doing jumps and riding the rails and all the tracks that are up there funnily in to one ampere theatre for many thousands of spectators below show should be a tremendous atmosphere and then finally we had to buy our lawn and cross country ski center i think the clue is in the name that is also. purpose built there's a magnificent stadium up there to hold ten thousand spectators there's always a tremendous atmosphere for biathlon at any event even world cup event never mind the olympics and it should be something special to apart from the sporting venues we've got the villages for the athletes something like two thousand to staying up

there in the mountains are all staying very nicely designed alpine style chalets they to get really dealing with this area is beautiful you can even perhaps go on to twitter and look at some of the pictures that the athletes have been posting because there we're seeing and then down here where i am it's rosa hall tall purpose built steve religion course the whole aim of this is to make sure that this is all here long after the olympics have gone and i'll be talking a bit more about that later on. the growth of the of the fresh air i wish i could do. the center of gravity is good and skilful over you are going to chance to go up you know good at it not very much but we should take a try it. all right now not having enough snow is a new problem vancouver of course the previous winter games the head of the preparation for those lympics told us she's taken advantage of the very experience prepared accordingly let's take a listen. we had not anticipated having no snow in fact you know that all of the

science and the history and the technology that snow would not be an issue for vancouver but you know the weather the weather changed and following christmas of two thousand and nine there was a period of about a month before the game so we had no snow when it became quite a crisis for us and we had to go and find a remedy or be the first country to stage an event at the olympic games so we went to work and we found a solution it was extremely difficult and painful but we overcame that and we found enough snow to cover the mountain the advantage that. they saw this happen they were invent whoever they were part of our organizing committee they had people in our team we went to sochi following the olympic games and we shared this and saw the advantage of understanding that this can happen. so the snow's covered the torch has been lit. up and examined it was behind us just

remind you again if you're just joining us welcome to the live in this the olympic park there behind us is the coastal cluster of mobility the flame in the distance there. but i did this and this is some facts and figures here i've been doing a bit of research you could fit seven of moscow's red squares into this whole area that's been developed from scratch with nothing here before really well but really it doesn't surprise me that organizers built such spaces media center is there another one in the mountain cluster we just spoke to andrew from and up to fifteen thousand people are working for different media companies from all over the globe and they've arrived here to cover the. you would talk about the competition the competition is tough amongst the journalists as well indeed the stakes are really high as well the t.v. audience for the sochi olympics is predicted to be think around three billion people worldwide and it's not just the traditional media that's on the bandwagon let's get back to moscow for more on that. data that was. a big big goodbye to cap and gown and he said no way that live but are such

a headquarters down for the winter olympics thanks very much guys really enjoying your live special coverage tonight we've got a lot of issues to cover here on ars the international in the studio with me our intrepid explorer james brown. as well is over here to my left of the host of world sports and just next to kate is i want to talk to you i might because the deal is this that we've been watching a lot of buzz going on about the olympics not just for example from facebook not just from instagram but the twitter sphere is going to show you bring us up on some of the twitter trending and tell me where it's a chat and what's it all about sure by all means if we can throw a graphic up on the wall there be by all means go for a bit of fun we reached out to a group of people called trends map they've helped us let's come and have a look at this trends were. put together a little platform where we've been we go here we go we've managed to have a look at where and how sochi twenty four is trending it's a great it's a great piece of gear to really have good fun is the kind of thing that's going to

help drive our news content i think in our t.v. in the coming years but. this is really just to give an example of where the twin to live pictures we're calling us. is being played yeah this is the this is the great field of sports upon which the term to live is being played actually just wanna grab a piece of paper because a i've wanted to remind you about some notes there now that we can we can take it back on the on the comments all across. the camera guys . look let's let's start with where this is where this is happening if you zoom in here you'll see if you can get some micro detail on the differences between let's say the color. cluster in the mountain and see what people people are working working through and. photographs are putting up in particular the athletes who we like to focus on and. other interesting point for me was that there's an enormous concentration also really going on you know what's going on so it's a lot of fans there a lot of the team a pretty big team they're all right. there's been some obvious tweets from the

aussies i think they get it you see because there's been so much slagging going on over the last couple weeks about. if we can bring up some of the tweets that we've been showing the team new zealand guys posted a photograph shortly before they went on air went into the stadium of them doing a hockaday docket on for their flag bearer u.s. skating look that team jamaica our favorites never get these guys are about to hear of the writings yeah. sochi team also put up a beautiful beautiful photograph of the german libertine coming through going to these things we're not getting a photograph here. great britain this is goes back to modern stuff on the fashion stakes. which is like a policeman's helmet a lovely lovely sickly yeah but i want to get a sense of what people are to these absolute point in the during the opening ceremony now here's my ology anthony charlotte the single greatest rendition of any of them i've ever heard. forty jets to already. created communications with

the u.s. team he absolutely loved the opening ceremony with all the williams though if we can hold out one there there is always going to be a naysayer of the b.b.c. found a stereotype to throw at the throw at the occasion and so that the thumping music just played into all the stereotypes that the brits you know know about the russians the evil russians still playing james bond and they do a lot of cold warriors and. it's really interesting. trying to get so we have taken the game very seriously from an online point of view we have set up a bunch of very nice lists. viewers can drop into the revenge based lists so if you want to get a sense of a particular event. and you want to see what the anthonys are saying their managers their fans the whole lot of the whole lot of twitter listen r.t. dot com we've got a marvelous update side really we're running in a minute by minute of what all the developments also there are see on instagram and odyssey international of course on facebook as well you know showing the latest global level day running out some promotions on facebook as well which is for

viewers to put some questions to some special i think late night live picture just jump in for a moment because james brown our intrepid explorer who's sitting next to me he's been all over russia following the flame everywhere apparently he's got something underneath the desk but he's been hiding a bit go on well it sounds slightly suspicious but. i do have to bring this up because this is my own version goes for me. so many people all over the country running with the olympic torch i got a chance to get one for myself but shouldn't james that should be down in sochi not here in moscow well i do understand that but i have to tell you there are fourteen thousand of these fourteen now fourteen thousand for the fourteen thousand torchbearers each one got the chance to own their individual torch here. when i was in far in the south of russia and you get given and you're suddenly part of this exclusive club and your high five and your fellow torchbearers you are in the

middle of a party you know you are waiting to do your run and you've got maybe just you know you've got one minute to run two hundred meters and you think of course don't let it go out please don't drop it just let it all go so yes you're right you will know that for just that time you are the only person in the world you told me in the commonwealth kemo major handed over here let's have a war you have you know it's against itself what you know yes that is. that's why it's but it's got is maybe you've all here kate have a go with this my. you lovely how do you. you know if i have a family security go. with one on the side but the they do make sure the second floor of two is because you can see the at the very top you've got like where the fire is actually burned it was about is that really a limb you can play that was over into the tool james i just feel that you're. about ready to be done and. all of care of all of the guys are having

a lovely time but they're also working very hard with having a great time with weather considerably more with moscow but i don't think anybody's going to come home with a toy. fair enough notice and go if i can before we head back out of sorts i don't have a chat with. host of our two world international sports can you talk to us just a little bit we haven't got much time but a little bit about the russian team and who got your eye on what we have the biggest russian team has ever been to win two games two hundred twenty three athletes and of course the star of the games as he's been so many times before it is yet. pushing here is almost like a cinderella story this time around thirty one years old been injured was in changed as to whether or not he would take part he took part of the russian nationals who came second to an eighteen year old then he couldn't compete at the europeans and we thought he's not going to make it he did a behind closed doors trial now he's the darling of the olympics he's managed to take the team event which is making its debut and take russia to the top along with the thing is possibly the russian team that the press faces in themselves who are

also backing up the russian team. and make it seem crank calls and their favorites to take the gold they're already the world champions the european champions they are the world record holders when it comes to the short and long programs so that really the whole favorite someone was going to i would see how he's doing in terms of taking gold in paris but in terms of the daddy of the russian team is the only one that's alexander's of course who is the bobsled there he was the russian flag bearers and. he's going on his old in his fifth olympics he's going for gold he's had silver and bronze before he retired after vancouver now it's his opportunity to go for gold in terms of gold though. the was in vancouver that's nikita khrushchev and the tough guy who's also sort of backing him up which is alexander lake and that's in the cross country skiing now google earth is the classical sprint champion he's also the favorite to take old world champion lake office down one of the. two of ski that's right. peter and also going to the norwegian contingent so cross-country skiing that's been good for

a medal there and then also in terms of the committee for a medal is probably in speed skating in the longer version of the event he's also going for gold he's actually silver and bronze before and he turns thirty one tomorrow so what a lucky i win that might be for the games and in terms of the short story the longer story the georgia version i should say of the skating events. and let me go to korea now it's an interesting story that because both of these guys are trying to nationalistic because to on used to be on. the three goals for south korea in two thousand and six changed his nationality and russia and would immediately go to yes these are ukrainian he's. also changed his nationality in terms of snowboarding we have to be in the to the she was the first russian female snowboarding chappie two thousand and seven going for gold again and finally we couldn't talk about the russian team without talking about the men's i still think it's the final event it's the final event of the olympics they've never as a russian nation in its own right they've never won the gold seven goals of the

soviet union what is the united states unified team in one thousand nine hundred to let the top of that so you have going to malkin and alexander ovechkin what a way to end the games would be russia could take gold in the final event well certainly the good old hopes going for them i know the last word didn't go that well for russia so we've got the biggest team now at ages and let's just see how they do james you know there's a lot of sun here actually nick surely picked george and i was going to you know i'm going to so what we want to talk about was the live. volunteers there absolutely were there thousands of volunteers are james are we could not we can speak to lower elizabeth gilbert let's you. and i have a chat with lois elizabeth gilbert joining us live for an artsy international lois hello it's a rory sushi here in moscow thank you so much for joining us is so quickly how were you selected for this what must be a once in a lifetime opportunity the role of a volunteer at the twenty fourteenth or to winterland i was selected by.

i can't hear anything actually there's nothing going. to lower some story it's really again in moscow you were telling us how you were selected for the role of volunteer there's nothing. terribly sorry we've lost you there lois elizabeth gilbert we'll try and get her back as soon as possible here on r.t. international she's a sort of a volunteer a canadian living in moscow if i james or james brown or you've had a lot of experience so you've met the volunteers you know what they're getting into down there thousands in attendance it must be a massive job. i mean these are the people really who are going to be the faces of these games they have the opportunity in the challenge to show the very best of russia you have there off foreign. but the vast majority are russians who will speak fluent english and many other languages and they will be the organizing people going in them to the right places helping them out socially trying to get them accustomed to sochi and show them

a bit of what russia is really like so they have been specially selected tens and tens of thousands of people applying for these roles but only twenty five thousand would chosen so it is very very select all right. as you are suggesting that we do that we do you know if i do we've got the volunteer back on the line here on our international live to start here we go here and see i do apologize that low it's rory again in moscow hello again nice to see you again you were just telling us here on the program how do you how did you how did you get selected for a role such as this to be a volunteer at the olympics it's a pretty amazing position to be. it definitely is this is my third olympics i did vancouver in london and you go through the same process it's two year waiting time for you have an interview this interview i was lucky enough that i live in moscow so i had a face to face interview and then you just wait and finally in october i hurried to and i was pretty excited because it really is

a great opportunity and i've got the olympic bug anyway so. it seems to me they pick the right person for the job i can see that big smile on your face lower so my colleague james brown is sitting next to me james wants to ask you a question as well because he's being made. james carry on by lois it sounds like you were to go very very well thank you i wanted to point out you were a lot of experience having done the olympics before how have you been preparing for these games. for these games well actually i was working in the moscow office so i actually i was doing some interviewing for the international volunteers and also helping with the. process for them as well so and then just getting really excited about it all i have my sister here working as she's a volunteer as well and my daughter is coming for the paralympics i have

a cousin here so it's reading in our family actually it certainly is an absolute family of lois elizabeth gilbert joining us live here at all of the international wishing you all the best for the twenty fourteen winter olympics and thank you very much indeed for volunteering yourself to be a volunteer and to help with the ongoing ill effects thank you very much indeed lois when we continue our live special coverage international sushi let's toss it back to you kevin though in. a way back to you guys. torched. and therefore you're going to leave that alone but talking about flames fly on the flame quality it's a bit of a turn but we need to talk about it big big issue it was a p.r. issue prior to the sochi twenty four olympics the controversy connected with the ban on gay propaganda to minors which of course came into force in russia last year cause huge among l. .