IOC President says Thank You to Sochi
International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach welcomed the organisers of the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games to a thank-you breakfast this morning following the successful Closing Ceremony of the Sochi Games last night. Joined at the event by the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, Bach awarded a number of the main organisers with Olympic Orders in gold and silver, and presented the Olympic Cup to the People of Sochi.
President Bach thanked the Sochi team for having delivered “athletes’ Games”, which had met with overwhelming approval from all the different stakeholders involved in Sochi 2014 but, in particular, from the athletes.
As an Olympian, Bach underlined the importance of this accolade as a descriptor of Sochi and Russia’s success in delivering the first ever Olympic Winter Games on Russian soil.
Olympic Orders in gold were presented to Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak and the President and CEO of the Sochi 2014 Organising Committee Dmitry Chernyshenko for their tireless work for the Sochi 2014 Games. Speaking before the presentation, the IOC Coordination Commission Chairman for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games, Jean-Claude Killy, underlined Deputy Prime Minister Kozak’s work in bringing the construction of what was an ambitious and complex project to fruition, while he paid tribute to President Chernyshenko, who has delivered Games that are the “Gateway to the Future” that he spoke about so passionately during the Sochi bid.