Olympic construction presses ahead in Sochi

Preparations for Sochi 2014, the Winter Olympic Games to be held in Russia, are gaining pace with 220 of 235 projects now implemented.

Speaking of progress, Russian president Dmitry Medvedev said, "Most construction projects for the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics are well underway. Only 15 projects were delayed because of problems such as land confiscation and I have urged the relevant departments to speed up the compensation process for compulsory land confiscation in these cases."

Some 30 Olympic sites will be commissioned this year and the main transportation infrastructure is on schedule for completion in September 2012 according to local media reports. All construction work is reportedly on target for completion in July 2013.

Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin said, "Construction and decoration of 49 of the 123 Olympic facilities is already underway while the design for a further 42 has now been completed.