IOC Worried About Progress Of Sochi's Olympic Venues

The "preparation of the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi continues to worry the IOC," according to the DPA. Int'l Ski Federation (FIS) President Gian Franco Kasper said that Sochi "still looks like a construction site." Kasper said, "In addition, the venues are still not finished." Kasper took part in an IOC inspection last week. The ski jumping stadium is still missing a judges tower. The tower is supposed to be temporarily build for the World Cup ski jumping event in December and completed by February. Kasper said he was "shocked about the conditions that fans will encounter in '14." The organization committee drastically reduced the number of people who are allowed to travel to the competitions in the mountains. Kasper said, "The ski jumping event can, due to constructional and safety reasons, but also due to transportation and traffic problems, only be attended by 7,500 people. This includes journalists, sponsors and the Olympic family. The IOC has to set a quota of who is allowed to attend and who is not" (DPA, 10/16).