Russia’s ski resort needs $1.6bln to become top-class Olympic destination

PanARMENIAN.Net - Rosa Khutor in Russia’s Sochi may be a fully fledged World Cup ski venue, but the resort still needs $1.6 billion in upgrades to turn it into an and top-class destination, billionaire owner Vladimir Potanin said Saturday, Feb 11.

The mountains above Sochi, where the 2014 Winter Games will be held, are hosting a stage of the FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup this weekend, the biggest test yet of their capacity to hold mass international competition.

Potanin, president of the Interros holding that is building Rosa Khutor - the location for all the Alpine skiing events, said the size of the resort must more than double ahead of the Olympics.Only one-quarter of its $2.2 billion budget has been spent so far, Potanin said.

“This money has gone toward the small town at the foot of the mountain, the gondolas and all the related infrastructure,” he said.

Four more hotels will be added to the resort's existing two, ten more ski lifts will raise the total to 18, and 40 kilometers of ski runs will become 80 by 2014, Potanin said, RIA Novosti reported.