Abstract:
The suitability of the subtropical Black Sea city of Soči as place for the XXII Winter Olympic Games may have been a surprise - even for geographers. Until 2007 Soči was known in the Western world as a summer resort for the elite of the Soviet working class and later for the higher social classes of the new Russia. In February 2014, for the first time after the fall of the Iron Curtain a post-socialist country will host this mega sports event. The image-pregnant Winter Games 2014 are essentially a manifestation and repositioning of a resurrected "new Russia" on the international political stage in an area extremely conflict-ridden since the decay of the Soviet Union. Viewed from the perspective of sustainability, this paper - part of an ex-ante analysis - focuses on significant natural and cultural regional structures in this Western Caucasus area as well as on the potential for conflict there. Moreover, it addresses also the local perception of Soči-2014. The contribution does not only question how support differs across social groups and what factors predict support for the Olympic Winter Games, but seeks also to gain an understanding of tendencies and new insights in regard to a sustainable regional development.