The city of Sochi in Russia has been chosen by the IOC to host the XXII Olympic Winter Games. The Black Sea city's victory was announced by IOC president Jaques Rogge at the IOC meeting in Guatamala City.

Sochi beat off challenges from Saltzburg in Austria and PyeongChang in the Republic of Korea.

Their goal is to deliver Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games of unsurpassed excellence for the athletes, the Olympic family, the Paralympic family and the world.

The Sochi Olympic Park will offer an innovative solution, situated on the Black Sea coast in an area designated for significant development. It will include all ice venues, the Olympic Stadium, the Main Media Centre (MMC), and the main Olympic Village.

It has been designed by experienced Olympic planners to offer athletes and officials, the IOC, the media, the sponsors and spectators extraordinary convenience and opportunities to enjoy the Games.

The mountain venues will be only 49 km away from the coastal cluster and are located in the mountain region of Krasnaya Polyana, or “Red Meadow”. The mountain venues are also clustered within a single valley, making travel times short.

Official Sochi 2014 website

Facts

Population - Population of Sochi is around 400,000 people. The surrounding, Krasnodar region, is home to 5.1 million people, and is the third largest Russian region.

Venues - Sochi’s Roza Khutor area will host all Alpine events. It will cover 227 hectares with 15 lifts. Gazprom resort on Sochi’s Psekhako Ridge, with 13 planned lifts serving 52 hectares, will host Cross Country Skiing.

Mountain Height - Mount Elbrus, in the Russian Caucasus is considered the highest mountain in Europe, at 5,642m. In contrast, France’s Mont Blanc is 4,810m.

Weather - The climate in Sochi is subtropical and the city usually has 200 sunny days a year. The average summer temperature is +26° C and -3° C in the winter. You can swim in the sea from April until October, and go skiing from October through May.