Open for Olympic business

For the first time in the country’s history Russia will host the Winter Olympic’s in 2014 in Sochi and with a little more than a year left until the games begin the first official Olympic merchandise store was opened in Moscow on Wednesday.

From Olympic toy mascots to skis and winter wear, shelves in the brand new department store were stacked to the rafters albeit some 2 000 kilometres away from where the Olympic action will happen.

President of the Sochi organising committee Dmitry Chernyshenko said: “We, Russia, are approaching the finishing line and in less than 450 days the Olympic flame will be lit up in Sochi. It is very important to understand that these are not just the games of the city of Sochi but the games of the whole country.”

It is the first of some 300 official merchandise stores to open across Russia in the run-up to the country’s first Winter Games.

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