Countdown to the Sochi Olympics

Countdown to the Sochi Olympics

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Bathers rest on the beach in Sochi, the Russian city soon due to host the 2014 Winter Olympics.

President Vladimir Putin has staked his personal and political prestige on the event and if all goes to plan, the costliest Games in history will be a showcase for Russia's achievements under his leadership, the vindication of a six-year, $50-billion vanity project on a truly Soviet scale.

. Rosa Khutor, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

At first glance, Sochi appears far from ready for the more than 120,000 spectators and 5,400 competitors and support staff expected to attend the two weeks of spectacle that begin February 7.

Just months before the Olympics open, cranes still tower over muddy construction sites, freshly laid pipes lie exposed to the weather and walkways are churned up around them. At the ski resort of Rosa Khutor, one of the venues for the Games, huge segments of metal piping lie strewn around on the ground.

Power cuts are frequent, traffic jams block roads because of the construction work and not all the venues can be reached by public transport or road yet, residents say.

. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Yuri, an engineer, stacks stones on the head of his colleague Alexander as they rest on the beach in the Adler district of Sochi. The sunny scene reflects what some see as the folly of turning the palm-lined summer beach resort into a 21st-century winter sports hub.

But for Putin, making the Sochi Games a success is important. As he tries to burnish Russia's diplomatic and economic standing and rally domestic support after protests against his long rule, the President wants to show Russia is a modern state capable of organising events on such a scale and restore national pride.

Yet Putin’s dream could still be shattered if venues on the subtropical Black Sea are not ready on time, if protests break out over a Russian law banning "gay propaganda" or if militants trying to carve out an Islamic state in the North Caucasus attack the Games.

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Slideshow

Lightning flashes in the sky above Sochi's airport.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Lightning flashes in the sky above Sochi's airport.

Cars drive near the airport through the pouring rain.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Cars drive near the airport through the pouring rain.

Migrant workers sleep in a car in the village of Krasnaya Polyana, one of the venues for the Winter Games.
. KRASNAYA POLYANA, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Migrant workers sleep in a car in the village of Krasnaya Polyana, one of the venues for the Winter Games.

A woman walks through driving rain in central Sochi.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

A woman walks through driving rain in central Sochi.

Migrant workers leave a bus after being detained in a sweep by authorities at a police station in central Sochi. Security in the city has been tightened in the run-up to the Games.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Migrant workers leave a bus after being detained in a sweep by authorities at a police station in central Sochi. Security in the city has been tightened in the run-up to the Games.

Workers lay asphalt in the Olympic Park in the Adler district of Sochi.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Workers lay asphalt in the Olympic Park in the Adler district of Sochi.

Builders in colourful raincoats wait in line to enter a canteen in the Olympic Park.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Builders in colourful raincoats wait in line to enter a canteen in the Olympic Park.

A woman sits near a pan of traditional pilaf at a street stall in the Sochi harbour.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

A woman sits near a pan of traditional pilaf at a street stall in the Sochi harbour.

Migrant construction workers chat in a cafe in the village of Krasnaya Polyana, some 40 kilometres (25 miles) east of Sochi.
. Krasnaya Polyana, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Migrant construction workers chat in a cafe in the village of Krasnaya Polyana, some 40 kilometres (25 miles) east of Sochi.

Olympic venues and an accommodation complex is visible through the window of an abandoned bus in the Adler district of Sochi.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Olympic venues and an accommodation complex is visible through the window of an abandoned bus in the Adler district of Sochi.

A dog rolls on the ground in a street in central Sochi.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

A dog rolls on the ground in a street in central Sochi.

Migrant workers lead a sheep down a street in the village of Krasnaya Polyana.
. Krasnaya Polyana, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Migrant workers lead a sheep down a street in the village of Krasnaya Polyana.

Newly built apartment blocks tower above a statue of Vladimir Lenin in central Sochi.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Newly built apartment blocks tower above a statue of Vladimir Lenin in central Sochi.

People play volleyball in a park in the city.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

People play volleyball in a park in the city.

Children sit outside their house near the beach in the Adler neighbourhood of Sochi.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Children sit outside their house near the beach in the Adler neighbourhood of Sochi.

Builders fish in a pond outside the Olympic Park.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Builders fish in a pond outside the Olympic Park.

A man fishes on a pier at the beach in central Sochi.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

A man fishes on a pier at the beach in central Sochi.

Tourists take a dip in the water.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Tourists take a dip in the water.

A surfer walks through storm debris on the beach in the Khosta district of the city.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

A surfer walks through storm debris on the beach in the Khosta district of the city.

People rest on a restaurant terrace in the ski resort of Rosa Khutor, one of the venues for the Games.
. ROSA KHUTOR, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

People rest on a restaurant terrace in the ski resort of Rosa Khutor, one of the venues for the Games.

Cable cars hang suspended in the rain at the ski resort.
. SOCHI, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

Cable cars hang suspended in the rain at the ski resort.

A general view shows the city centre of Rosa Khutor.
. ROSA KHUTOR, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

A general view shows the city centre of Rosa Khutor.

The Olympic village in Rosa Khutor is seen from Aibga mountain, some 40 kilometres (25 miles) east of Sochi.
. Rosa Khutor, Russia. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

The Olympic village in Rosa Khutor is seen from Aibga mountain, some 40 kilometres (25 miles) east of Sochi.