track champion victor on fell out with his native south korea bosses after being overlooked for vancouver olympics and switched. his allegiance to rush a decision which paid off as a twenty eight year old one free golds and a bronze to give russia a bit first in the medals and the sports. i wanted to win a medal right away and taking the fifteen hundred meter bronze help me set the tone and take gold in the following events you have winning in sochi was much tougher than and touring because i was performing after a difficult recovery from injury this time around. unlike vic wild wasn't the start of the men's parallel slalom when he married snowboarder. yet the twenty seven year old american turned russian has gone from strength to strength winning two golds at

vancouver's olympics cost $6.2 billion, a fraction of what russia is spending on sochi. the vancouver chief said his team scrutinized every penny. >> it was blood, sweat and tears, day and night, looking at everything. we simply wanted every account to find a way to get the product over the finished line. we simply have to deliver the came. with russian president vladimir putin punished socially to the olympic committee, he promised to spend $12 million. since then the cost ballooned to an estimated 51 billion. according to investigations by russian activists, officials and a senior member of the international olympic committee much of the cost of the sochi games is due to corruption. >> various schemes where they inflate the price of project and pocket the difference and running over. it's been far and away the most expensive olympics. these metals are on display. they are a reminder of national pride in hosting the games. >> robert van wines berg who has studied olympic financing said the games have become nationalistic spectacles spiralling out of the control. >> despi

olympics just four years ago. which were financially very mod es, but also very successful. al jazeera reports from vancouver. the flame no longer leap from the olympic calderon, but the city has tangible reminders of the winter games four years ago, in the form of several sports stadium, a new rail line to the city's airport, housing, and community centers. vancouver's olympics cost about $6.2 billion. a fraction of what russian is spending on sochi. vancouver olympics chief john furlong says his team scrutinized every penny that was -- looking at absolutely everything. went into every single account to find a way to get project over the finish line, we simply had to finish games. >> when the president pitched sochi to the international olympic committee, he promised to spend $12 billion. since then the cost has ballooned. >> according to investigations by russian activists opposition political figures and even a senior member of the international olympic committee, much of the enormous costs of the sochi games is due to corruption. >> various schemes involved where they inflate the price of some of the proje

vancouver's olympics caused about $62,000,000,000 u.s. dollars, a fraction of what russia is spending on sochi. vancouver olympics john if you arelong says his team scrutinized every penny that was spent. blood, sweat and tears, absolutely everything, you know, that we simply went into every single account. when the russian president pitched sochi in 2007, he promised to spend $12,000,000,000. cost has ballooned to $51,000,000,000. >> russian activists, opposition politicals and even a senior member of the international olympic committee, much of the enormous cost of the sochi games is due to corruption. project pocket the difference, running over with their anticipated to be so it's been far and away the most expensive olympics ever been. >> these olympics vancouver convention center are a reminder of canada's national pride in hosting games. >> robert van wines berg at the university of columbia has study financing closely says the games have become nationalistic spectacle did spiraling out of control. >> despite talk of sustainability,

of times when i wasn't sure i wanted to jump anymore. >> reporter: jessica says watching the vancouver olympicsand she was getting tired of fighting. >> i didn't like having to be an advocate for the sport bip have rather been an athlete regard three-time olympic ski jumper was one of the skeptics. >> i would be the first to say i was very -- narrow-minded when the women first started fighting. >> reporter: now he's a believer, and he'll coach the first-ever u.s. women's olympic ski jumping team at sochi. >> they are going to be one of the biggest stories in sochi. they already are. such a cinderella story, because of the pureness of it. >> to see these athletes finally achieve their dreams is fabulous. >> reporter: took so long. a lot of energy. a lot of sacrifice. it's a great moment for them. >> reporter: opening ceremony. what's that going to be like for you? >> i have no idea. i hear from other people that it's awesome, and i'm expecting it to be probably the moment where everything kind of sinks in. >> reporter: jessica's olympic dreams started at that 7-year-old who loved to jump, and wh

. >> the flames no longer leap from vancouver's olympic call ron, but the city has tangible reminders of the winter games four years ago. in the form of several sports stadium, a new rail line to the city's airport, housing and community centers. van cover olympics says his team scrutinized every penny that was spent. >> it was blood, sweat, and tears, it was day and night, looking at absolutely everything, you know, we simply went into every single account, to find a way to get our project over the finish line. we simply lad to deliver the game. he promised to spend $12 billion. since then, the cost has ballooned. to an estimated $51 billion. according to investigations. and even a senior member of the olympic committee, much of the enormous cost of the sochi games is due to corruption. >> various schemes involved where they inflate the price of some of the projects and then pocket the difference and they end up running over what they are anticipating to be. it's been far and away that it has ever been. >> these olympic medals on display at the van

olympic preparation, it was rather provincial. >> reporter: a new highway and railway from sochi to the mountain cluster cost an estimated $9.4 billion. that alone is more than it cost vancouver to host olympics four years ago. the russians also spent billions of dollars building six new stadiums in the coast al cluster. the venues are getting rave reviews from athletes and coaches, especially the ones that were here for a test event last march. now the estimated costs, $51 billion to build up this beautiful olympic venues that you see behind me. still not finished. many reporters, their roommates weren't ready when they got here, and i've got to tell you, the water coming out of their faucet, not something you'd want to drink or wash your face w.reporting live from sochi, i'm jack doles, back for you. >> a few hotel problems, but hopefully the games will go off without a hitch. billie jean king is backing out. the tennis legend will not be part of the u.s. delegation. she's staying back here in the united states because of her mother's failing health. president obama chose king, who is openly gay, and is outspoken in her opposition to russia's anti-gay laws. in a white house

of times when i wasn't sure i wanted to jump anymore. >> reporter: jessica says watching the vancouver olympicselt like seeing a party that she wasn't invited to, and she was getting tiertd of fighting. >> i didn't like having to be an advocate for the sport. i would rather have been a participant. >> i would be the first to say i was very narrow minded when the women first started fighting. >> reporter: but now he's a believer and he'll coach the first ever u.s. women's olympic ski jumping team at sochi. >> they are going to be one of the biggest stories of sochi. they already are. such a cinderella story because of the pureness of it. >> to see these athletes finally achieve their dreams is just fabulous. >> took so long. a lot of energy. a lot of sacrifice. it's a great moment for them. >> reporter: opening ceremonies, what's that going to be like for you? >> i have no idea. i hear from other people that it's awesome and i'm expecting it to be probably the moment where everything kind of sinks in. >> reporter: jessica's olympic dreams started as that 7-year-old who loved to jump, and while s

. >> reporter: 18 months later, he's at the vancouver olympics. he didn't medal there, but he's hoping with more experience and knowledge sochi will be different. >> 45% speed, 45% intensity, like power and everything. and the rest is just crazy. you got to be a little nuts. >> reporter: he calls it controlled chaos that's really uncomfortable. no padding, racing 90 miles per hour down an icy track. >> if you look at my helmet, it has paint down the sides from my head smacking the sides. it's very, very intense ride. >> reporter: only one thing is scarier, riding a bull. this turned into a cowboy after transferring to boise state for college. when he's not riding bulls or sleds, he's a construction engineer with the national guard. right now the focus is on the olympics. the focus to win. >> for the very first time, i'm a medal threat. >> reporter: the bobsled team has a motto, prepare to podium. they're happy to be on team usa, but they say it's all about winning a medal, so we are rooting for him. janelle wang, nbc bay area news. >> all right, l

the 25-year-old broke his back just before going to the vancouver olympics.e says his drunken days are over and he has recovered and is focusing on winning a medal in sochi. as for the half pipe, it is cloudy. is it not snowing. it's a rain/snow slushy mix. it's not good for the snowboarders. they have pushed the half pipe event back a few hours. we'll have to see how it goes. we'll keep you posted. janelle wang, nbc bay area news. >> we will see you in about ten minutes. >>> janelle is blogging behind the scenes. just go to www.nbcbayarea.com. >>> it may be a work night but the ski slopes in the sierra were packed with night skiers enjoying the fresh snow. the snow is good for the resort but what about our drought? chief meteorologist jeff ranieri is adding up how much snow has fallen but we start with terry mcsweeney joining us live from donner sum it. . >> you can see how much snow has fallen. they are estimating 5 feet here. below 6500 feet there is little snow. skiers are not complaining. the folks at the state water resources department are. at boreal m

were awarded six years ago. 25has cost 37 billion euros, times as much as the last winter olympics in vancouver and local authorities say it will bring long-term benefit to the area. >> everything that has been built, the ski slopes, the infrastructure, and the 24,000 hotel rooms will be used after the olympics. believe me, it is a legacy. >> sochi is now much better and acted with 327 kilometers of new road, train stations and a new airport. >> we live in such a good region. sochi was a summer resort before, and now it is also a winter resort. i do not think that in the future these venues will not be used. >> not all local residents agree. some say promised infrastructure has failed to materialize. have beently we connected to the water system, but it was not clean. you could not drink it. after that, when the frost came, he would turn to ice, and that was it. nothing else was done for us. >> construction has also been plagued by delays, leaving worries that lagged -- lavish facilities may not be completed on time. meanwhile, the winter olympics are reaching all the way to japan. the annual w

champion victor on fell out with his native south korea boss is after being overlooked for the vancouver olympics and switched his allegiance to russia a decision which paid off as the twenty eight year old won three golds and a bronze to give russia a bit first at the medals in this sports. i wanted to win a medal right away and taking the fifteen hundred meter bronze helped me set the tone and take gold in the following events and you have a winning in sochi was much tougher than and touring because i was performing after a difficult recovery from injury this time around. unlike anvik wild wasn't the start of the men's parallel slalom when he married snowboarder. yet the twenty seven year old american turned russian has gone from strength to strength winning two golds at his home games with the first of his two top of the podium finishes coming just minutes after his wife had won bronze in the women's parallel giant slalom i didn't have any good for i think it had states that i wasn't going to reach the goals that i wanted and pressure was an opportunity to get the goals. you know to be able to

olympics in history. rob reynolds went to vancouver when the focus was pinching pennys. >> the flames no longer leap from lympic cauldron but the city has tangible riernldz of four years ago. sports stadiums, a new rail line, in the city's airport, housing and communities centers. vancouver's olympics cost about $6.2 billion, a fraction of what russia is spending on sochi. his team scrutinized every penny that the team spent. >> it was blood and tears, day and night, looking at absolutely everything. we simply went into every single account to find our way to get our project over the finish line. we simply had to deliver the games with the budget we had. >> when russian president vladimir putin pishe -- pished e games, he promised to bring it in for a certain figure, it has ballooned to $51 billion. >> even a senior member of the olympic committee much of the enormous cost of the sochi games is due to corruption. >> various schemes involved where they inflate the price of some of the projects and then pocket the difference or contracts end up running over what they're anticipated to be. so it's been far a

from the vancouver olympics ryan miller who was such an instrumental part of taking what was a very young usa side all the way and so close to beating canada four years ago but this u.s.c. team better a lot more mature they've got a lot of players have gained experience which is patrick kane two time stanley cup winner with the chicago blackhawks looking very impressive it's called the most goals so far off to the group stages netting fifteen and just conceding for phil kessel they probably got one of the form players so far in that solomon the toronto maple leafs forward had a great day in the season's break in the n.h.l. with his scoring is continuing and he was the first american trying to score a hand charades sense nineteen eighty when of course i was the famous miracle on ice victory of it's only union which america eventually wins on to claim gold in lake placid so some very big very interesting match ups coming out for team usa both in men and women cockle but the signs are locking what are some of the other events that we should be keeping our eyes on. well i like just to point o

he is the author of, "activism and the olympics: dissent at the games in vancouver and london." ing us from toronto, canada, we are with helen lenskyj. her latest book is, "sexual diversity and the sochi 2014 olympics: no more rainbows." monthbeing published this . she also wrote "gender politics industry: no more rainbows." and we are with samantha retrosi who wrote, "why the olympics are a lot like 'the hunger games.'" >> dave zirin, let me begin with you by asking your comments on the fact that for the first time, the u.s. allegation to the olympics doesn't include anyone from either the president or the vice president's family. could you talk about the significance of that and why you think that decision was taken? >> first of all, i want to thank samantha retrosi for her words. this is like an olympic snowden. not that she faces jail time, but this is legitimate whistleblowing moment. it is very brave way she is saying. i had a flashback this morning to getting a call from amy and 2010 when she was detained at the canadian border for going across for different event in the v

he was a break man in the vancouver olympics but for the sochi games, he has moved from the back of thesled to the front as the driver. >> the stress levels are higher when you're a pilot. you know, you got to go into it knowing that the team kind of relies on you. >> reporter: cuppi cunningham i ready. his teammate steven holcomb driver of the other four-man bobsled team. holcomb's team won gold in vancouver, sochi will be harder for its uphill section. >> it will take a fast push and take a great sled and great driving. it will be all three and right now if you look up here, we have all three. >> reporter: this team has a lot of either things, too, four of them are army soldiers including cunningham. johnny quinn used to be a former nfl player but that didn't last long. >> i was cut three times before my 26th birthday. it was very humbling for me and i knew i still wanted to compete and so finding this avenue in bobsled is fantastic. >> reporter: and dallas robinson has always dreamed big. >> i had a life-long dream of being an ocho limp yin and astronaut and bank robber in the old we

they were the best in vancouver and they've maintained that quality all the way through this olympics it's going to be one of those two. but to see what happened in the team event with the canadians, it really, it kind of elevated charlie and meryl to another level. and so, it's going to be a lot for the canadians to kind of close that gap now. >> and really quickly, gracie gold and ashley wagner, what do you think their shot is here and who's their competition? >> the ladies' event is compelling. you've got yuna kim coming back, you've got, you know, lut skia, who's become this international sensation. we have two american ladies that are incredible, but watch out for polina edmunds. i mean, she was second at nationals. first-year senior, she's got all the qualities in the world. she's very much like her in a way that she's young and good technically. we have a lot to look forward to. >> scott hamilton, thanks so much. you can catch all of the olympic action in prime time at 8:00/7:00 central right here on nbc. >>> up next, some very unlikely volunteers at the sochi olympic games. we

to give you some context, that is fewer viewers than any night of the vancouver olympics.people as interested in sochi? joining me now is "forbes"' sports contributor. pat, what's going on? >> i think at the end of the day the digital effect. i mean, people want to watch sporting events live, and when of these events that are taking place early in the morning, you're not going to get good prime time ratings. people already know what's going on. and also here mt. states, we just don't have a lot of americans that are excelling. shaun white, lindsey vonn were the two big names, shaun white only competed in one event and did not medal. cheryl: the social media aspect, it's pretty darn easy to find out exactly how everyone did, and when you find out, for instance, that shaun white or whoever your favorite person is lost, you don't bother watching. so it really is about social media. do you think the networks -- nbc, i guess -- should change the way that they broadcast, you know, the olympics which they've got this financial hold on for years to come? >> i really don't know wha

the transportation costs have surpassed more than the vancouver olympics and our hardworking jim handly the challenges of getting from the coast to the mountains in sochi. >> reporter: the palm trees in south beach pastels make it tough to leave the coastal cluster, but the russians have made it easy, hop on a bus, and a whole other world awaits. we are making good time here in the olympic lane, but on the rails we would be traveling three times as fast, and together to build both, the government spent almost $8 billion. welcome to the alpine wonderland where the mode of transportation of 17 gond la lifts built in the last year, and above them held kopt ers scanning the landscape round the clock, and this is ski, skeleton, and snowboard and bobsled country. this is the start of the luge. the slide is ready, but the only team ready to try it and train on it are the russians. everything here is brand new. some construction is still down to the wire. the mountains are ready, and this is where the snow is. >> this is known for the quality of snow, and you have beautiful mountain, and great

in this sense, the vancouver olympics were a huge washout for russia.didn't take nearly as many medals home as they wanted to. people were, i mean, cab drivers, your average man on the street was actually really, really upset about it in a way that i didn't expect. >> so you wrote today something i thought was really caught my eye. there's been all of these tweets and kind of mocking photos of sochi and the hotels being not ready and water in glasses that looks dirty. you said "it does seem like the western press is on the hunt for evidence of how inept and hilarious the russians are. there does seem to be something mean spirited in all of this. there's a fine line between fair criticism and schadenfreude and the western press has been on the side of the ladder." >> i think, i've been tracking this, a lot of these tweets coming out of there. i think everybody figured that things wouldn't be ready on time. they're often not ready on time. pretty much anywhere the olympics are held. it's a huge thing to pull off, and the russians aren't really great logis

in >> reporter: 18 months later he's at the vancouver olympics. he didn't medal there but he's hoping with more experience and knowledge sochi will be different. >> 45% speed, 45% intensity, like, power and everything. and the rest just crazy. you got to be a little nuts. >> reporter: he calls it controlled chaos that's really uncomfortable. no padding, no seat belts, racing 90 miles per hour down an icy track. >> if you look at my helmet, it has paint down the sides of it from my head smacking the side. and they are cutting cut up and bloodied. it's a very intense ride. >> reporter: only one thing is scarier, riding a bull. this beach boy turned into a cowboy after transferring to boise state for college and when he's not riding bulls or sleds, he's a construction engineer with the national guard. but right now, the focus is on the olympics. the focus to win. >> i'm going to say this for the very first time, i'm a medal contender, a medal threat. >> reporter: the bobsled team has a motto, p-2-p, prepare to podium. coming up i speak one-on-one wit

the skiing events is estimated to have cost more than the entire budget for the twenty ten vancouver winter olympics who bought despite blowing the budget which was set at twelve billion dollars the best ones are is for it's been made back for decades to come. as a hoping to cause the false alone example which although it was a summer event transformed the city and i spoke to the man of boston about the benefits his city is still repaying. the search. was so low now we're going to gauge where excuse for the change there. we change all the cd we make a very interesting change in the cd we open the cd to the sea as a method to run and see. for us she's by the way or off have been after. this thing we share and feel ninety one one million people came to let alone a charity scam to but the moment now seven million and that's how people came to have so. many but important change people change the world but the world. or actually spain or advising i am really excited now because with no expense spared were already surprised to get spectacular so i said the price it is all the athletes i mean best is alrea

reports global viewing figures for these winter games are up by nearly ten percent from the vancouver winter olympics four years ago with an extra twenty five million people. in your school taking place around the world and of course the winter games they wouldn't be running so smoothly in the atmosphere would be great if it wasn't for the volunteers like ali martin andrews was more. i think. they are the unsung and unpaid heroes of the olympics and staging such a gigantic event without volunteers like these would be unthinkable more than one hundred eighty thousand people wanted to join up twenty five thousand of them made the cuts a small army of on hand to help has among them thousands of foreigners to bridge the dozens of languages heard right now hailing from the united states canada and the u.k. many have already been here for several weeks prepping i'm rehearsing at the black sea resort in what's the most is the first visit to russia. come from glasgow scotland to come here on my own. experience and the people are really great. i like everything here and it feels great knowing that i'm contrib

after failing to qualify for the national team ahead of the two thousand ten vancouver winter olympics. spam weekly that was due to fractional feuds in the sports sector the call first system in which athletes can be evaluated based solely on their performance and wet which the fairness or preferably swiss guarantee cherish the ministry to come up with measures to root out corruption and the sports every day. all in jail. i didn't use. my peace with your expert analyst with the whole of asia is hard kinda like the half hour usually not need to change it for the day's top stories short of their business technology trends. lots of global weather forecasts and more. the twu. every week not to lie on the aid of tv the special regulator has vowed to operate the data protection system as korea reels from the shock of the largest ever personal information breach in its history during a meeting at the national assembly thursday financial services commission chair since a year and reiterated the importance of protecting client data and found to prove to be says data security structure in order

he wanted to run in two thousand and six on the bronze he picked up in vancouver four years ago in fact after those winter olympics in vancouver he announced his retirement from the sport with the opportunity to perform at a home olympics games was too much for him to turn down a coaxed him out of retirement and that now looks like an inspired decision elsewhere russia's bronze medal came in the figure skating ice dance competition in the can cuts a lot of doing enough to secure a place on the podium the gold medal actually went to the american davis and white who happened to be coached by a russian in the arena as a waiver elsewhere in the biathlon women's twelve and a half k. in the mass start there the gold medal went to brad bell a russian daddy a dome achiever and it was her third gold medal of these games and in securing that gold she's become the first female by athlete to win three individual gold medals at a single winter olympics where the female biathlon must start did take place however the men's event was postponed for a second day. as was the men's snowboard cross because of fog in the mountains acro

. >> he took home two bronze medals during last olympic games in vancouver. >>> nbc bay area is your home for all things olympics. janelle wang will have live reports from sochi at 5:00 this morning. inside information about how much the anticipated opening, how people are getting ready for it olympic flame scheduled to arrive as well. anytime not on the air, go to nbcbayarea.com. sign up for our olympic newsletter sent to your in-box. nbcbayarea.com. >> 4:51. unexpected, late edition to the pebble beach pro am. >>> super bowl champ russell wilson could be headed to arizona. >>> this is san jose. a good amount of cars. standard at 4:52. not a lot of problems here. i will take you to the north bay. >>> welcome back, everyone. er very good wednesday morning. take a look at this, late afternoon in sochi. we are taking you live to russia. winter olympics kicking off in one day. hard to believe it's already here. kind of gives you a good background of what the area looks like, what the olympic village will look like, where the people live as well. we'll check in with janelle wang coming up

so it's been far and away the most expensive olympics that's ever been. >> these olympic medals on display at the vancouvervention center are a reminder of canada's national pride hosting the games. robert van winesberg at the university of british columbia who studied olympic financing closely said the games have become nationalistic spectacles spiraling out of control. >> these are becoming massive showcases for entire nations. we're seeing it with rio, with sochi, we saw it with beijing and now the world cup is becoming like this. the games are just a platform upon which you build an international image. >> as that trend continues, the relatively modest games held here on canada's pacific shore may prove to have been the last of their kind. >> brazil's world cup in june is also likely going to finish up well over budget. those games were set to be completed for under $1 billion, but cost overruns are already close to $3 billion, and they're not even finished yet. >> fans of philip seymour hoffman are mourning his unexpected death. he was found dead from an apparent drug overdose. he won the oscar for hi

olympic stories are made of. he works construction and painting jobs in the summers. in vancouver in 2010 he didn't make the team as a boarder. he worked for the team as a wax tech. in sochi he's an olympic medallist. his teammate jacob say warrior.

the two teams squared off last winter olympics in vancouver. that was the gold medal match. the canadian squad won that by one point in overtime. >> from the ice to the slopes, maddie bowman will go for the gold in a new free style half-pipe. qualifications and finals will be today. the women's half-pipe one of the events airing on -- in prime time tonight on nbc bay area. we also have gold medal finals in ladies figure skating and the men's free style ski cross. >> there are lots of people on ski week in the south bay. so traffic may be lighter this week. >> you know, we have been expecting. that we did see lighter for tuesday, then wednesday came and we had slowdowns all over so kind of soup to nuts. the bay bridge toll plaza we had a report of a car with both doors open. i think someone was looking for more cash to pay the toll. that happens when you look for the change under the seats. smooth approaching the maze. coming across from the north bay no problems, through the north bay an easy flow including 37 between novato and vallejo. antioch, no real slowing but a blip,

for the vancouver olympics in 2010 when he didn't make the team as a boarder, he worked for the team as a wax tech. in sochi, test an olympic medalist. and his teammate, trevor jacob is a warrior. he didn't medal, but he competed. he finished despite what he believes is a broken ankle during the semi-finals. heavy snow wrecked havoc with the star times. meryl davis and charlie white made history as the first americans to take ice dancing gold. the pair who've been together 17 years, beat out canadian rivals who twiz led their way to silver. team usa advanced to the gold medal game to a much anticipated match against canada. these were soaring 50 feet in the air and fail nailing his landing. but the most long awaited came on the track, steve holcomb blased through the longest bobsled run to win the brobz. it was the first american win in 62 years. the gold was still there, with holcomb tweeting, oh yeah, this is what it feels like when you wake up to a dream come through. >> reporter: holcomb is one of those great stories too. he started going blind. he got very depressed, of course. b

but he had bad injuries as well he fell out of the south korean team he didn't make the last olympics in vancouver but russia said look we'll take you won and he's been fabulous he's come away with three gold medals i think you got a bronze too which makes him the most decorated olympian of these games and he also helped his team because they got medals as well particularly in the relay this is what he said about his achievements and also the point he's trying to make to you is that he was able to settle in russia very quickly. when i came to russia two years ago for the first three months i missed korea but then i met other athletes and things became better i like being here i like the food the culture it's all very interesting. just. what is it with dixon victors winning somebody medal c. is a good name to have there isn't a little bit i think that's why they were dogs number two number two you. know he's not victor is he but he's still very successful in fact he's the most decorated winter olympians ever and he managed to achieve that after picking up two golds here in sochi in the biathlon so

vancouver four years ago. well i think to say they would be delighted is an understatement because russia produced its worst performance ever at a winter olympics in vancouver and then it came away with a paltry three gold medals is more than triple done here in sochi in and the reason is that there's been a massive overhaul over the last. for years it's been a purge of sporting personnel the sporting coaches were brought in and brand new facilities rapidly were created and they are now reaping the benefits but whatever happens today you have to say and it is to say that these games him sort of been record breaking and start to finish. the longest ever told igniting the most expensive the most compact and one of the most watched winter olympics in yeas against stunning backdrops gripping stories of heartbreak in joy emerged on a daily basis russia's red machine taking seconds to light up a nation's heart then deflating it days later with a quarter final exit. russian figure skaters left the world with a veteran and a youngster helping them grab the seventeen gold but hopes of move glory buckled under a bad back in media hype heaped on tiny shou

a cost of eight point seven billion us dollars more than the total cost of the last twenty olympics in vancouver. many other projects won well over budget but unconfirmed reports saying as much as thirty billion us dollars with the kickbacks and assume it's something the russian olympic committee denies its own tea. organizers expect over two hundred thousand spectators at the two weeks of games. this is going to deliver a certain growth them all. through consumption we estimate that. you know it could be of several decimal points of gdp. so something that the canal could be especially handy for russia an environment of relatively low growth rates that we now see france's economy grew by only one point three percent to two thousand thirteen less than half the three point four percent expansion in two thousand twelve. this is also banking on the consumption from tourism after the games with over thirteen hundred hours of live olympic tv coverage being broadcast over a billion and a half people worldwide. so she has the potential of being recognized as a holiday hotspots. well that's certainly the

sergei reminds us in 2010 they went to the vancouver olympics sending out the wrong signal given that the cossacks associated with the destruction of the native peoples. i don't anticipate, wouldn't anticipate any kind of effort by sarkhasian to disrupt the games. if there is -- these are islamists not sarkhasian nationalists. we have seen islamists targeting people with a national agenda in places like bulgaria in the north caucusus we have seen a few fascinations of academics who have been trying to portray non islamist identity for the sarkhasians. just to finally a few extra words about the north caucusus. i should also mention another reason abkhazia is problematic which no one has mentioned so i should mention september 9th the russian vice consul in abkhazia was assassinated, the main suspect is a chechen who was wounded in georgia. that is a different subplot. that is a reason for the russians to regard abkhazia as a problem and a threat to these games rather than as an opportunity. a couple words about north caucusus. gordon and i would agree we have differences of perspectiv