Sochi dazzled the world on Friday with an opening ceremony featuring a feast of Russian music and a cast of thousands including ballet stars, acrobats, cosmonauts -- and even an ex-heavyweight boxer.
European commentators portrayed the opening ceremony of the Sochi Winter Olympics as a personal triumph and even an exorbitant show of power for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Russia on Friday officially opens in Sochi its first ever Winter Olympics with a lavish ceremony attended by dozens of heads of state and aimed at impressing a sceptical world with an unforgettable spectacle.
The US government warned American and foreign airlines Wednesday -- just ahead of the Sochi Olympics -- that terrorists could try to hide explosives in toothpaste tubes on Russia-bound flights.
Before the Winter Olympic Games even kick off on Friday, Russian cinema-goers are savouring victories in sports-themed Kremlin-funded films, from a patriotic biopic of top athletes to a remake of "Some Like it Hot" set in Sochi.
Women outnumber men for the first time in Japan's Winter Olympics team as the country sends a record number of athletes to Sochi in hopes of its biggest-ever medal haul.
Presidents Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin discussed security at the Sochi Winter Olympics Tuesday, amid rising fears in Washington for the safety of US athletes following terror threats against the Games.
The United States is ready to deploy air and naval assets -- including two ships -- to help secure the upcoming Winter Olympics in Russia after terror threats.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is planning to attend the opening ceremony of the Sochi Winter Olympics, reports said Friday, despite calls for a boycott over Russia's anti-gay laws.
