Final preparations are in fact underway in Sochi for the Winter Olympic opening ceremony, while some qualifying rounds started yesterday.

The opening ceremony will be held in the Fisht Stadium, near the Black Sea shore. Russia’s first Winter Olympics will see a record attendance. Organizers say more than 80 percent of tickets to events have been sold.

More than 3,000 athletes from around the world to compete in 15 categories. 65 heads of state and government as well as international organizations are expected to attend. The International Olympic Committee is holding its final meeting in Sochi, and committee members have expressed their excitement.

"It’s exciting and I’m really longing for the second when the Olympic flame shines over the Olympic stadium and I’m sure so do the athletes. I’m sure it will be an exciting show." said Thomas Bach, President, International Olympic Committee.

"I think it is fantastic facilities, it’s in great condition, it’s a really exciting moment that the Games will start tonight, and what I also see from the people, it is a fantastic first time for the Olympic Games. There is an Olympic Park, this has never been the case before but the village is excellent, the food is good and everyone looks happy." said Sergei Bubka, IOC Member.

声明：音视频均来自互联网链接，仅供学习使用。本网站自身不存储、控制、修改被链接的内容。"沪江英语"高度重视知识产权保护。当如发现本网站发布的信息包含有侵犯其著作权的链接内容时，请联系我们，我们将依法采取措施移除相关内容或屏蔽相关链接。