Sochi 2014 Paralympic Villages ready to welcome athletes

The Coastal and Mountain Paralympic Villages opened their doors on Saturday (1 March) to the athletes and delegation representatives of the countries participating in the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games.

At the Paralympic Winter Games from 7-16 March, two Paralympic villages will be operating in the immediate vicinity of the competition venues. During the Games they will accommodate 45 delegations of National Paralympic Committees – about 1,600 athletes and delegation members. Over 2,000 paid staff members and Sochi 2014 volunteers will ensure the vital operation of both villages during the Games.

Both Coastal and Mountain Paralympic Villages are fully accessible and include ramps, automatic doors in addition to voice activation in elevators.

Usadba

The mayor of the Coastal Paralympic Village is two-time Paralympic Games champion and world record holder in swimming Olesya Vladykina, while the deputy mayor is Beijing 2008 Paralympian in table tennis Sergey Poddubny. Another Coastal Village host is the smiling Ray of Light, mascot of the Paralympic Games.

Usadba Paralympic Village in the Coastal Cluster is designed for 350 athletes and delegation members of the countries participating in the Paralympic Games. The village is located in close proximity to the Coastal Cluster venues, therefore an athlete’s trip to training and competition venues takes no more than 10 minutes. Athletes participating in ice sledge hockey and wheelchair curling competitions will reside in Usadba.

Village

The Mayor of the Mountain Paralympic Village is Sergey Shilov, six-time Paralympic champion, seven-time world champion, and four-time European champion in skiing. The Deputy Mayor of the Mountain Village is Aleksey Ashapatov, champion and record holder at the Paralympic Games in Beijing and London, world and European champion in athletics. At the entrance, visitors and residents to the Village will meet one of the "hosts", the mascot of the Paralympic Games, the friendly Snowflake.

The Paralympic Village in the Mountain Cluster will receive 700 guests during Games time, including members of delegations of the participating countries and athletes competing in cross-country skiing, biathlon and alpine skiing. The Mountain Village is located in the immediate vicinity of the ski centre and snowboard park at an altitude of 1,100 m. Athletes will be staying in comfortable hotel rooms, apartment hotels and chalets built in alpine style. The distance to the competition venues of the mountain cluster is about 10 km. Transportation will be available 24/7 within the village and from the village to competition venues. In addition, athletes and delegation members will be able to take advantage of two Rosa Khutor cable car stations, which are located within walking distance of the Mountain Village.

During the Paralympic Games, the Village will introduce guests to the genuine Russian tradition of hospitality, where crafts, needlework, national signs and legends are passed from hand to hand and mouth to mouth. Various games and entertainment, arts and crafts and traditional food will demonstrate the unique mentality of the Russian people.

In addition to the Coastal and Mountain Villages, athletes competing in biathlon and cross-country skiing can stay in Nordic Ski Housing at the Psekhako Ridge, close to the venue.