2014 Olympic Winter games take place in Russia

By: Alyssa Ballard

   The 2014 Winter Olympics are scheduled to start February 7, and end February 23. They are to be played in the Adler arena in the heart of Sochi, Russia. Ninety-eight events of the 15 winter sports are to be played. There will be 88 nations participating in the Sochi Olympics. An expected 2500 plus athletes will be competing.

   The Sochi Olympics will be the first Olympics played in the Russian federation since the breakup of the USSR. The last time the Olympics were in Russia was 1980, in Moscow. Sochi, Russia was selected as the host city on July 4, 2007 during the 119^th IOC meeting held in Guatemala City.
   As of October 2013, the estimated cost of the 2014 Winter Olympics is $51 billion dollars in American currency. The 2014 Winter Olympics are the most expensive yet, beating out the Beijing summer games at 46.5 billion dollars. These particular games are adding 11 new venues, which is why tickets are going to be super pricey.
   A major factor in Sochi’s income also adding to the cost will be the fact that there will be so many tourists coming to town for this event. Sochi gold medal contains 516 grams of silver and 6 grams of gold, which when the math is figured up, it’s worth about $566.
   There are said to be 12 new events at the Sochi Olympics. Perhaps the most controversial new sport being added to the venue is women’s ski jumping. Lawsuits and lots of lobbying have circumstantially, yet finally brought equality to the former all men’s sport.
   With all the excitement that the Olympics bring, this particular season seems to be what all of the buzz is about. News stories, blogs, and newspaper articles have already been published about the event weeks prior to the kick-off day.