The reality of the figures sometimes turns out to be misleading. In Sochi, the organizers of the Games want to swear hand on heart that the first Olympic events were full, or almost full, of spectators. Alexandra Kosterina, the spokesperson for the organizing committee, announced on Sunday February 9 that 92% of places had been sold for the first day of competition. On the various sites, however, the stands reveal entire sections of empty seats.
Where have the spectators of the Sochi Games gone? After investigation, it seems that a good number of them are where no one expected them. The organizers admitted this with an embarrassed air: several thousand spectators, mainly Russians, were still trying to access the competition sites when the events began. Most were slowed down by security checks. Some were still on the train, not having anticipated that it would take them longer to access the sites than on a normal Sunday in February.
Alexandra Kosterina agrees: “The Russian mentality is a bit special. People don't like waiting in a stadium before a match starts. They often arrive at the last minute.” At the risk, sometimes, of missing the show.
According to the organizing committee, actual attendance would have reached 81% on the first day of the Olympic events. The “latecomers” would therefore have been several thousand. According to several testimonies, some even turned back.
Another discovery: Russians love sledding. To insanity. We didn't know it, nor did the organizers. For the first time since the start of the Sochi Games, an event was packed with the public, with 100% of tickets sold: the men's single-seater luge final, contested on Sunday February 9. With three of their athletes in the top 10, they were not disappointed with the trip.
