Sochi is preparing for the arrival of the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games' flags on March 26th. The flags will be carried through the city and hoisted at the special-purpose flag staffs in downtown Sochi, the capital of the 2014 Olympics.
Entrusted to carry the main symbols of the Olympic and Paralympic movements will be Vancouver champions and prize winners, skater Ivan Skobrev, bobsledders Alexander Zubkov and Alexei Voevoda, figure skater Yevgeny Plyushenko, skeleton racer Alexander Tretyakov, as well as Paralympian skiers Irek Zaripov, Sergei Shilov, Anna Burmistrova, Kirill Mikhailov and Nikolai Polukhin.
The upcoming event reminds you that there are three years left before the start of the Sochi Olympic Games. According to a poll, held by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center, Russians are generally concerned over the country's team poor performance in Vancouver. A fifth of those polled believe that to win in Sochi, Russia will have to alter the training program and pay special attention to the Olympic team, says Stepan Lvov of the Russian Public Opinion Research Center:
"Among other recommendations given by 8 per cent of respondents is increased financing of sports, change of managers of sports federations, the Olympic Committee and the coaching staff. Another 8 per cent believe that suitable conditions should be provided for training the sportsmen, beginning with childhood".
The opinion of ordinary Russians practically coincides with the stand of billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, ranking 39th on Forbes' list of the richest people in the world, who proposed his own system of improving Russia's sports positions. According to him, the main thing is systematic approach to creating the so-called "sports elevator" from children's sport schools to the Olympic team. A similar system is currently being introduced in Russian biathlon, under the guidance of Mikhail Prokhorov, who also heads the Russian Biathlon Union.
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