Sochi Olympics: what to make of them?

Well, it's already been a week of Olympic falls and rises, ups and downs, cheer and disappointment. But as much as we sports fans are concerned about the sports, those of us who are also political scientists and IR researchers concern ourselves with a bunch of other things on top of that - politics, international relations, nation-branding, image, and soft power - the lot.

There has expectedly been an avalanche of related literature and comments on the Sochi Olympics, prior to the Games and ongoing now as we are in the thick of it. And I'm sure there will be much more afterwards. So I thought it would be a good idea to go through some of that writing and commentary on Sochi 2014 now and do a little bit of analysis. Perhaps, this exercise would be useful in getting across my view of these Olympics as well.

As I said, there was enough commentary in time for the coming Sochi Olympics days before the Opening Ceremony. Analysts, commentators and journalists expectedly engaged in discussion on the international and domestic context surrounding the Olympics. Above all these discussions, however, towers the main question, which is the reason Sochi was picked host city 7 years ago: How will the Olympics impact on Russia's international standing and reputation? And when it comes to Russia's international image in particular, everything is in the spotlight and being scrutinised to determine what is good and what ultimately proves bad for Russia as a result of the whole Olympic enterprise. This is not to mention that the Olympics tend to be politicised and thelmselves are a subject of contestation.

Once prior judgements are made about the international context, the domestic situation and Russia's Olympic preparations, more gets thrown into the mix as we reach the Opening Ceremony and the Olympics commence. The picture gets more complex as the Olympics progress: views get amended, hopes dashed or confirmed, expectations met or thwarted. Why am I saying all this? - Because our judgement and perception of the Olympics is bound to be different as we look at them from different perspectives, at different times, and in different circumstances.

There has been a lot of debate on whose side you are when it comes to Sochi 2014. Are you critical of it because it seems like there has been a lot of corruption and money-stealing involved, or are you happy that Russia is hosting the Olympics? From this follows that if you are a Putin critic, you are expected to disapprove of the whole Olympic thing. If you do like the fact that the Olympics are being held in Sochi, however, then you are sure to be a Putin supporter. - Well, I think it doesn't work like that really. For better or worse, humans are complicated creatures, and their attitudes are better understood if we consider different perspectives from which to look at the Olympics.

From the point of view of a Russian athlete the Sochi Olympics are a great thing - you get to compete on home soil, you get greater psychological comfort from the fact that you will be supported by many home fans, you feel proud that the most important event in an athlete's professional life takes place in your country. - I know it: my former schoolmate with whom I used to be great friends and who is competing in these Olympics feels like that, and it's OK. And any athlete, for that matter, wouldn't normally bother about the domestic or international context around Russia if the Olympic facilities are state of the art, the athletes' needs are met, and security fulfils its duty. Interviews with figure-skater Irina Slutskaya and tennis player Maria Sharapova (at 0:21) prove that point. All that athletes care about is sport.

There is also another level at which to consider the Olympics - an individual emotional level. The Olympics are a festival for many and a celebration of sport for sport-lovers. It's a big occasion that brings people together not only from the many cities of one country, but also from the many cities of many countries. Emotions are even more hightened during the Opening Ceremony, which is a feast for the eyes. So if this festival of good humour, friendship and togetherness goes well security- and hospitality-wise, criticisms of the Olympics are likely to recede into the background, if only for the short time that the Olympics take place as emotions are known to subside quickly.

When we speak of the Opening Ceremony it should also be remembered that the Opening Ceremony is a big show involving hundreds of stage managers, assistants, artists and actors, as well as massive planning and vision. In other words, it's no mean feat. The Sochi Olympics are therefore inevitably to be judged from an artistic and aesthetic perspective. How well the Opening Ceremony is staged, how professionally sound and artistically coherent it is, whether the message it conveys is unobtrusive and light and if it establishes a coherence between its content and expression. - On this account Russia, too, could or could not rank high in perceptions.  

Finally, there is inevitably a political perspective to the Sochi Olympics, their domestic and international context. Domestically, it means people debate the logic behind the Olympics and the way the Olympic preparations were managed. There are, for instance, allegations of corruption and graft, of displacement of Sochi residents and the killing of stray dogs. There is also a greater domestic debate around Putin's efforts to construct a stronger and more cohesive identity for Russia and as a result to legitimise Russia's current political rule which many find unattractive. On the other hand, some would argue the Olympics can boost Russia's economy and tourism and bring in much-needed investment, which is good (perhaps, I should have put an economic perspective in a separate category, but I will leave it for now). If this happens, then Russia's image gets an upgrade as a result and would further contribute to the economy and the legitimation of Russia's ruling class. Internationally, all the above debates are being watched and shared and reflected in political concerns over Russia globally. The prime question here is, how will the Olympics impact on Russia's image abroad and what place will Russia manage to secure on the international stage as a result of the Olympics, in the short and, most importantly, long term? Do the Russians deserve to host the Olympics in the first place?

The latter - political - perspective, I think, is ultimately all-encompassing, whether you like it or not. Of all the levels of perception that I've mentioned - an athlete's perspective, individual emotional, aesthetic and economic - any can end up being politicised and overshadowed by a political one. Even as the Olympics take place now politics is ongoing behind the scenes and is ever-present. Putin meets with heads of state and the Olympics are used as an opportunity and background against which important talks happen and international politics is forged. Just the other day he visited US and Canadian Houses, welcoming the athletes and checking if they were happy with the Olympics.    

So, we have all those different levels of perception that, in my view, help understand why there's such a variety of opinion of the Sochi Olympics and such heated debates about them at home and abroad. I would love to further discuss the Olympics by looking at the Opening Ceremony (which I personally found fascinating) but I will reserve that for my next Olympic post. 

Olympics-inspired

With the end of this year's Olympics it seems only logical to once again look back on how it all began, and assess London's, and UK's, good job on the task. After all, the world will be 'watching' Sochi, and thus Russia, in less than two years' time at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics with even greater scrutiny, and lessons to be learnt are in order. No matter how frustrated Russia can be at the West's regular fault-finding, this time it will surely have to go out of its way to impress all and everyone, if only for a couple of Olympic weeks.

If it weren't for the West, it would still be a good idea to impress our Chinese counterparts anyway, wouldn't it, with whom we share the BRICS? Incidentally, the past decade has seen almost all BRICS countries undertake the hard - and noble - task of hosting at least one big sporting event: China and its Beijing Olympiad in 2008, South Africa's World Cup in 2010, in 2016 the Summer Games will come to Brazil - the first country to ever hold the Olympics in South America (not to mention that the country is also going to play host to the 2014 World Cup). South Africa has even fraternally agreed to advise Brazil on this occasion. In 2007 this hosting honour was granted to Russia for the 2014 Winter Olympic Games and in 2010 for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Do I smell a trend here?

The scale of the impression that every country aspires to make at such events is illustrated well enough by the amounts of money that nations have been shown ready and willing to pour over the last few decades into Olympics preparation and infrastructure. The rising costs are much in evidence as quite often the Games go over the intended budget and ultimately prove non-cost-effective. As a result, they are becoming incredibly expensive to afford.  

But Russia has shown unfailing determination to host the next Winter Olympiad. The Russian bid in 2007 for the 2014 Winter Olympics ultimately proved a big deal with elements of assertive diplomacy whereby President Putin unabashedly unleashed all his charms on all important IOC people in town. If anything, the bid - and the win - was every bit about getting the world, at least formally, to give Russia a chance and accept it as a worthy power with positive image potential. To the extent that money is a means to an end, it was of secondary importance to Russia. To the extent that image matters and an impression is to be made in due course on an Olympics-craving, peace-loving and smiling world, money is ultimately a primary consideration. While none of us may know for certain how much will be poured into the Sochi Games that already have beaten all previous Winter Olympics in costs, one would reasonably expect that the Opening Ceremony, the crowning glory of all Olympics, would eat up a fair chunk of the budget. After all, the Opening Ceremony is supposed to set the ball rolling in the direction of a brighter national reputation. 

Now, that got me thinking: if the grandness of an opening ceremony is in any direct proportion to the money spent on its preparation and on hosting the Olympics overall, then Russia should be doing alright. But for some reason this self-reassuring belief just won't suffice. As the Olympics are first and foremost about selling yourself to the world, Russia should really have something up its sleeve to amaze the world at the Olympics Opening Ceremony in 2014. And, as it happens, nothing provides us with a better case study and a fresh example for emulation than the recent London 2012 Games. Before I even started wondering, in the wake of the London Opening Ceremony in July, what story lines and characters could possibly fill up Russia's Sochi Opening Ceremony, Russia's Dozhd' TV channel had done it for me. The London Ceremony, with all its reminiscences and references to the 'glorious history', today's multinational society, welfare state and British culture, offers good food for thought in preparation for Sochi 2014 as we Russians are thinking about how we will do it 'our way' in two years' time.    

There are three main themes that stood out for me in the London Ceremony: 1) humour, 2) history, and 3) culture. One speaker on the Dozhd' programme kept pointing out how masterful the British are at having a good laugh about their history and themselves - doing it in that elegant, light, truly British way, using fine, sophisticated humour verging on self-irony, which only flatters the nation and does not damage the overall perception of its history and its people. Another thing was the British history part that depicted a 'glorious past' - selectively, of course. But the Industrial Revolution was truly one of the greatest things Britain has given the world, an achievement of global significance - no matter what followed afterwards in the next few centuries. Lastly, culture in its broadest sense was one big theme that ran through the whole of the Ceremony, from the NHS and classic children's literature, pop music, comedy and culture to multicultural families where the mum is white and the dad is black, through to social networking and political correctness to a sense of an absolutely inclusive society. In other words, the Ceremony was full of British characteristics.

Drawing analogies with the topics in the Ceremony, the speakers on Dozhd' suggested having Lenin wave from the Mausoleum (or the armoured car) to Putin passing by on the Firebird accompanied by Ilya of Murom, or having the DneproGES and the Belomorkanal shoot from under the ground on which GULAG workers toil away. Jokes aside, there are many things that have long been considered as purely 'Russian brands' that the country could capitalise on: from fairy tales with Dragon Gorynych and the Hut on Chicken Legs, to notorious history figures like Rasputin and the entire Tsar epoch, through to more household stuff such as the Samovar, Matreshka, Lapti, Valenki and the Faberge Eggs. Not to mention Shalyapin, Tchaikovsky, Dostoyevsky and Tolstoy, the Russian Ballet, and the Double-Headed Eagle of course. I really liked the idea of 12,000 little swans from 'The Swan Lake' dancing all together  on the floor of the Olympic stadium (...when suddenly a massive Bulava missile creeps up from under the ground to take the place of these little swans, one commentator suggested). But seriously, 12,000 little swans dancing synchronised would look great. So would groups of people from Russia's many ethnic regions dressed in their native attire, dancing their native dances or singing in choirs. Imagine Caucasian folk dancing the lezginka in large numbers, so exciting! Despite the all too well-known ethnic issues in Soviet times and, moreover, the tensions in today's Russia, people's friendship has always been there, a recurring theme in the day-to-day life of many people. So, 'People's Friendship' could be a good theme for the Sochi Opening Ceremony in 2014, and Russia could successfully capitalise on that one.      

The one major problem with emulating London on this score is obviously trying not to slide into rude, cynical or plain stupid and fake when playing on the country's many stereotypes and its 'glorious past'. A good thing about London, as one commentator emphasised, was that the Brits can laugh at themselves and at the same time be genuinely proud of themselves in a way that they do not make idiots of themselves. Britain also came out as 'a nation secure in its own post-empire identity'. Which might be a big issue for us Russians. Russia needs to approach itself and what it represents in the minds of many people, foreign and native, in a subtle, light-hearted, easy-going way - in other words, it needs to do it the smart way. It needs to amaze audiences with its authentic unadulterated 'Russianness'. There may be a healthy dose of self-deprecation and laughter, national pride and jubilation - but these should be packed in a wisely crafted script, passionate and exciting, that would make everyone want to be part of this sportsfest, would make everyone feel happy. The other problem with comparing Brits and Russians is that from beginning to end Britain showed a progression from a normal rural country through a growing industrial society to a prosperous modern nation that positively looks into the future and sees itself at the forefront of history-making. In this hour-and-a-half story good eventually triumphs over evil and all live happily ever after. As one commentator said, it was 'a portrait of a country aware of its shortcomings but surprisingly confident about its future.' Russia has inherited from its past more than it needs to feel that way. This is not the end, not a definitive happy ending of a beautiful (hi)story as today's Russia is still in a state of 'transition', in a state of 'confusion'. But it does not mean that it is not looking into the future. And it does not mean Russia cannot introduce itself properly, present its contemporary face and show its best sides when the moment calls for it. It had better do it because we all know you can never make a second first impression.

Details of the Sochi Opening Ceremony, which will take place on 7th February 2014, are of course being kept secret. Prime Minister Medvedev hinted at certain things during his London visit, where he gave an interview to The Times newspaper and also talked to Russian journalists covering the Olympics. Medvedev's overall impression was positive, he really liked the Opening Ceremony, especially the great British music that everyone in the world knows of, and the lighting of the Olympic cauldron. But, he said, the Sochi Opening Ceremony would have to be shorter in time as it is Winter Olympics, and the focus would rather be on visual effects than on music as the Russian contemporary music scene is almost unknown outside of Russia and the countries of the former Soviet Union. The overarching theme could be Russia's vastness and its beauty. Medvedev also emphasised that he came  in for the London Olympics with the officials responsible for the Sochi Games (head of the Russian Olympic Committee Alexander Zhukov and Dmitri Kozak who is in charge of the Sochi preparations) 'to talk to our [British] counterparts' and learn from London's Olympic experience. Aforementioned Dmitri Kozak was more measured about the London opening spectacular and suggested that the Sochi ceremony be shorter and 'more dynamic'. Russian Ambassador to the UK Alexander Yakovenko pointed out the cultivation of patriotism during the London Games that Russia would do well to take on board at Sochi. Rehearsals at the Sochi Olympic Stadium are scheduled to begin in August 2013. The Opening and Closing Ceremonies are administered by a special Agency for the Preparation of the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the Sochi Olympic Games set up in spring 2012. 

Meanwhile, ahead of the Sochi Games in 2014 Russia, quite naturally, has started to actively engage in sports and public diplomacy - and this was evident at this year's London Games. The Russian Embassy in London acted as the main conduit for information on Russian activities in the capital during the Olympic fortnight. The Russian presence materialised in the form of Russia Park - the Russian hospitality house stationed in the beautiful Kensington Gardens and charged with the task of welcoming the world to the Russian sporting and cultural scene, and of giving a glimpse into what to expect at the coming Winter Games in Sochi. I believe the exercise in public diplomacy under the slogan 'Where Russia Greets the World' went down well. There was everything to satisfy any world-curious mind: fake snow and ice shows in the spirit of a true 'Russian winter' with famous Russian athletes to perform and engage, various cultural events, and authentic Russian cuisine. The organisers seem to have made every effort to keep to the highest standards of cultural PR. The many cultural events and performances were conducted as part of the ongoing Sochi Cultural Olympiad in the run-up to the 2014 Games that aims to 'present Russia's unique cultural heritage to the world'. The shows included rock and pop bands, ethnic folk ensembles, a Cossack choir and a jazz orchestra, theatre and childrens' performances. The organisers also talked tourism and investment while in London, presenting their vision of the future of the Sochi region and the surroundings as a dynamic must-see destination for holidaymakers and travellers alike. At some point the guests even got to dance the lezginka! Overall, it looks like the Russian hospitality house proved a good enough investment in the country's international image and a fine example of nation branding as the organisers recognised and optimised the importance of cultural person-to-person interactions. It is worth noting that some national hospitality houses, such as the US's, were not open to the public at all and only provided access to athletes and diplomats.  

Apart from the Russian Sochi pavilion at London 2012, one can get an idea of what the actual Games in 2014 are planned to be like on the dedicated website. The website looks friendly and welcoming to me. What is of particular interest are the pages that highlight sustainable development and the 'green' character of the forthcoming Games, special care for people with disabilities, and volunteering - all three not featuring particularly high in Russians' everyday lives. For dessert, you have the 'Interesting Facts' section, which did a good job of bringing out the child in me and genuinely tickled my curiosity. Getting down to serious stuff, the Sochi Games, the website goes, will be highly innovative and technologically advanced. All elements of the strategic vision for the Games are brought together in a so-called 'Russian Diamond'. The organisers have obviously embarked on the hard task of making the Games a success, aiming to showcase a modern, innovative, progressive Russia that would integrate into the global community and leave a lasting (positive) impression on the international audience. More specifically, Brand Sochi 2014 is designed to introduce a multifaceted image of Russia: a country rich in history and culture and embarking on a successful future, a country open to opportunities and the passion to make dreams a reality, and a country committed to equality and celebrating diversity. In terms of Russia's cultural and national values, an interesting objective which echoes Ambassador Yakovenko's advice cited above for the Sochi Olympics is proclaimed on the website: 'development of patriotism and the feeling of national pride'. 

Last but not least, it transpired lately that the Sochi 2014 Organising Committee had finally come up with a motto for the Games. To cut a long story short, it's "Жаркие. Зимние. Твои." I guess the creative team really wanted to make it simple and stupid but instead it just came out as simply stupid. Not to mention that the English version is plain confusing: 'Hot. Cool. Yours.' (meaning 'Hot. Winter (Games). Yours.' if literally translated from Russian). Are they cold (cool) or are they hot? The official source provides an elaborate explanation saying that the motto follows up from the brand's earlier slogan presented in 2009, which is 'This Is My Games'. It's all well and good that the Games are meant to reach out to the ordinary citizens and are 'mine' and everyone's to enjoy in everyone's own kind of way, but both of these sequences of words come across as too static for the energising spirit of the Olympic Games and thus lack dynamism. I don't see, either, how the slogan 'is intended to reflect the national character of Russia and the values of the Sochi 2014 brand, as well as Sochi 2014's progressive and innovative approach to the organisation and staging of the Games'. If the diversity of Russia's national character, which head of the Organising Committee Dmitri Chernyshenko emphasised, boils down to being either hot or cool, or both at the same time - then yes, they are right, and I have no further questions for these guys. But something just doesn't add up. Previous slogans, such as Turin 2006 ('Passion Lives Here'), Beijing 2008 ('One World, One Dream'), Vancouver 2010 ('With Glowing Hearts'), London 2012 at last ('Inspire A Generation'), invited you into the future and had the intensity, passion and inspiration that are missing in the Sochi 2014 slogan. What are Russia's mission and message in this entire enterprise anyway? 

Just for fun, creative Internet folk instantly came up with hundreds of spoofs and memes for the Olympic motto the day the official slogan was revealed. The Sochi 2014 organisers have definitely caused a stir. 

I will leave you with this lovely unofficial Sochi 2014 mascot.