hockeyfan1
New member
"Пусть начнутся игры"
....that's Russian for....
"Let the Games begin!!!"
,.. amid continuing terror threats, ongoing state censonship of media (Russian journalists / reporters are threatened & harassed from time to time), social media censorship ( Canada's four-man bobsleigh member Jason Kripps " Team Kripps" found his website blocked. No apparent reason given), and lastly, jailing of members of the gay / lesbian community in Russian society, in which Russian President Putin defends the move in saying that " It is necessary to protect our youth".
Even former leader Mikhail Gorbachev has decried Putin's governance of certain democratic principles. While Russia has come a long way from those Glasnost & Perestroika days, there's still a ways to go before one can call Russian society truly democratic. Harkening back to the dark days of tbe Soviet empire, there's no comparison now. Still...
Anyways, speaking of the Sochi Games, they are by far the most expensive yet, and the venues quite modern. A stretch of highway, ss an example, cost $200M (Cdn) per kilometre. The construction of these Games has been fraught with corruption and fraud. Nothing surprising for most familiar with Olympic Games building.
The displaced people, whose homes were demolished to make room for further construction, were housed in a neatly-built subdivision. Many seem satisfied with their new dwellings.
Not all Russisns are happy with these Olympics, with many claiming the rising costs have added to just about everything including the price of public transportation, as many believe much of the cost overruns couid have been better spent roads & infrastructure maintensnce.
The opening ceremonies were lavish with plenty of Russian culture and classical music which is good. Vladislav Tretiak, legendary goaltender, along with legendary skater Irina Rodrina, lit the Olympic cauldron. The ceremonies were colourful, awash in plenty of fireworks, dancing, adornment of costumes, structures, symbols, etc.
For more on the Opening Ceremonies, click here:
http://olympics.cbc.ca/news/article/sochi-opening-ceremony-set-begin.html
....that's Russian for....
"Let the Games begin!!!"
,.. amid continuing terror threats, ongoing state censonship of media (Russian journalists / reporters are threatened & harassed from time to time), social media censorship ( Canada's four-man bobsleigh member Jason Kripps " Team Kripps" found his website blocked. No apparent reason given), and lastly, jailing of members of the gay / lesbian community in Russian society, in which Russian President Putin defends the move in saying that " It is necessary to protect our youth".
Even former leader Mikhail Gorbachev has decried Putin's governance of certain democratic principles. While Russia has come a long way from those Glasnost & Perestroika days, there's still a ways to go before one can call Russian society truly democratic. Harkening back to the dark days of tbe Soviet empire, there's no comparison now. Still...
Anyways, speaking of the Sochi Games, they are by far the most expensive yet, and the venues quite modern. A stretch of highway, ss an example, cost $200M (Cdn) per kilometre. The construction of these Games has been fraught with corruption and fraud. Nothing surprising for most familiar with Olympic Games building.
The displaced people, whose homes were demolished to make room for further construction, were housed in a neatly-built subdivision. Many seem satisfied with their new dwellings.
Not all Russisns are happy with these Olympics, with many claiming the rising costs have added to just about everything including the price of public transportation, as many believe much of the cost overruns couid have been better spent roads & infrastructure maintensnce.
The opening ceremonies were lavish with plenty of Russian culture and classical music which is good. Vladislav Tretiak, legendary goaltender, along with legendary skater Irina Rodrina, lit the Olympic cauldron. The ceremonies were colourful, awash in plenty of fireworks, dancing, adornment of costumes, structures, symbols, etc.
For more on the Opening Ceremonies, click here:
http://olympics.cbc.ca/news/article/sochi-opening-ceremony-set-begin.html
