Before the start of the Winter Olympic Games, many of us wondered: what will be the symbols of the Olympic Games in Sochi 2014? Not immediately, but with an adventure and all sorts of postponements, but, nevertheless, the symbol of the Olympic Games in Sochi was chosen by a popular vote. And not one, but three. They are the White Bear, Leopard and Bunny.

The opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Games was truly spectacular. I think that is why it will be interesting for you to visit the museum where the symbols of the Sochi Olympics are located. There you will learn about the fate of that technique, those numerous decorations and, of course, the mascots of the Games: the Polar Bear, the Leopard and the Bunny, who took part in this solemn event, as well as many more interesting things about the history of sports.

More than 3 billion people around the world watched with admiration on TV this grand performance, which lasted for about 3 hours.

This was the second event of this magnitude in Russia. The first was the Games in Moscow in 1980, and the second was the Games in Sochi 34 years later. Surprisingly, this coincidence: Moscow hosted 22 Summer Olympic Games, and Sochi also hosted 22, but Winter Olympic Games.

All possible methods were used in staging this enchanting show on. The performance was attended by about 3,000 actors, as well as mechanisms using sophisticated computer technology.

3 thousand costumes for the participants were sewn for the opening ceremony. Many of these costumes involved LED devices to be attached to clothing.

Numerous guests noted that never before the Games in Sochi was the airspace used so widely. For example, the famous soaring statues of Worker and Kolkhoz Woman were made in Holland. I would like to say that in Russia there would be craftsmen for this, but ... It turned out the way it turned out. And the shape of these air figures was supported by 11 fans hidden inside.

In the part of the performance, which tells about the beginning of the 20th century, 72 sets were used, 817 actors participated in them. The tractors that took part in this also had impressive dimensions: the height was about 6 meters, and the length was as much as 12. Their weight reached a ton! Each such massive structure was operated by 3-4 people.

The islands of the earth with Russian landscapes floated in the sky very effectively in front of the spectators: cows, dogs, even a volcano erupting lava was on the Kamchatka island.

There were 7 of them in total. The length of each reached 26 meters. Inside the "island" they were stuffed with various technical things, inside the volcano there was a generator with a lamp. In general, each element had its own control mechanism.

The delightful troika of horses, seemingly weightless at first glance, was made in Sweden and weighed 9 tons. The horses, literally, from feet to hooves, were simply stuffed with electronics!

In order to demonstrate this large-sized structure to the Sochi organizers of the Olympic Games, specialists from Sweden had to use the NATO underground base in an atmosphere of deep secrecy. In other places, the secrecy was not sufficient, and the dimensions of the premises did not allow. After all, the dimensions of the horse-drawn carriage are impressive: the length is 23 meters and the height is 22!

All this, of course, is not in the museum. Such huge structures simply would not fit in a small exhibition space.

But here you will have an excellent opportunity to study the history of the Olympic Games since ancient times, to visit Ancient Greece, to see old photographs, the uniform of athletes of past years, to recall the wonderful moments of the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics in Moscow and Sochi, to see with our own eyes some of the details of this grandiose holiday.

Figures that boggle the imagination

It really was a grandiose event not only for Sochi, but for the whole country! More than 2,800 athletes from 88 countries took part in the competition.

98 sets of awards were played. And this is 1254 medals. Each award weighed approximately 500 grams. This has never happened before these Games! The city of Sochi hosted fans from 126 countries. Over 1.1 million tickets have been sold.

The grandiose show was broadcast around the world by 140 cameras. And the opening ceremony was watched by 3 billion people!

The Sochi Winter Olympics were held from 7 to 23 February 2014. And at the end, the Paralympic Games were held here. The main competitions were held in and on.

There is one more interesting fact: with the beginning of the 2014 Olympics, the question arose about switching the clock hands to daylight saving time, as was the case annually. And due to the need for agreements with foreign campaigns on broadcasting competitions, this issue was not even discussed in the State Duma of Russia until the very end of the Olympics.

Voting on elections Olympic symbols The Winter Olympic Games took place in several stages. An interesting fact is that the leaders of the first competitions did not make it into the top three finalists. The tailless amphibian "Zoich", Ded Moroz, Dolphin and Brown Bear left the distance.

So if you really want to remember how it was, to personally look at real objects that flew, jumped, stood, rode around the stadium during a fantastically beautiful performance and after that became famous all over the world, then you need, you just need to visit the museum the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Sochi.

A memory left for centuries

The walls of the Olympic Museum are painted with winter scenes, which in itself is reminiscent of the Winter Olympics. At the Discovery Festival there was a lot of original things that had not been used anywhere else.

There are so many technology, people, such bright colors that you can't remember all the details. But next to each exhibit there is a plate with a photograph - where and when it could be seen, so it will not be difficult to remember. If, of course, they looked at all ...

The ship "Vostok", the conqueror of space, is standing here;

a cow on the lawn near a house in the village - she was on one of the flying islands, if you remember; a sailboat symbolizing the reign of Peter I and the beginning of the creation of the Russian fleet; a table with books, probably designed to tell about the colossal contribution of Russian people to science and art;

nearby are giant bright figures: bears with a samovar, they talked about the celebration of Maslenitsa in Russia.

There are medals under the glass - this was the original idea of ​​the show organizers. All 40,000 spectators seated in the stands of the Fisht stadium received unusual medals. Inside were hidden five LEDs and an infrared mechanism to control its operation: light, on and off, receiving signals from a specially designed searchlight.

There are also awards of famous athletes of the past, tickets, little talismans. Here, in the Museum of Sports Glory of the city of Sochi, you can capture yourself with a real Olympic torch.

I'll tell you that it's heavy enough! It's one thing to pose for a photo. But the athletes still had to run several kilometers with him.

Interestingly, the cost of one such torch is estimated at about 13,000 rubles, and a total of 16,000 copies were ordered for the Olympic torch relay!

And of course, the coolest, brightest, most memorable real Sochi Olympic mascots - White Bear on skates, Bunny on skis and Leopard on snowboard.

They are made in Australia, in the city of Melbourne (as if our Lefties were not able to do it themselves).

The bear is a robot, he knows how to move his lips, "uttering" sounds, turn his head, change poses. It was for these movements that a separate person was responsible, who was inside the doll.

During the opening ceremony of the Games, all three animal figures were positioned on electric vehicles, in which the puppeteer and the driver sat. And inside Mishka there was 1 more person, since this character could express more emotions than all the other heroes.

Built-in electric motors were responsible for the movements of the joints of the Sochi animals, and compressed air cylinders inside their "bodies" created the appearance of breathing. Organizers' idea winter Olympics succeeded, and these 8-meter figures looked as if they were alive, right?

So if you want to take pictures with celebrities - come! White Bear, Bunny and Leopard are always here and warmly welcome visitors.

Living talismans

For some reason, this particular pair of talismans is especially popular. But I never met the Polar Bear on the streets ... 😆

Where is it, how much does it cost

The museum, where the Olympic mascots are located, is open from 11 to 19 hours. Children under 7 years old admit free, and an adult ticket costs 300 rubles.

But I want to warn you that I visited the exhibition, which was temporarily located in a small space. In fact, the Sochi Olympics Museum is quite large. Therefore, now the opening hours of the museum and even its location may change. And if you decide to go here, it is better to clarify this issue on the website in advance.

Due to the shortened format of the exhibition, they took me only 50 rubles for viewing, and the photo with the Olympic torch cost 200 rubles. (asked for 300). Such a price was provided that the originals of the photo were sent to me by e-mail. A simple photo and printing on a mini-photo (slightly larger than a postage stamp) is free.

I visited the museum, which at that time was located in the large mirrored building of the "Museum Center" Olympic Park at the address: Mezhdunarodnaya street, 6. Its coordinates: 43.40521, 39.96088.

Several other exhibitions are located nearby: a museum of dinosaurs and holographic illusions, a unique representation of electricity. And, of course, the famous one with its dizzying slides.

One of them loves tobogganing and playing curling, the second cannot live without his snowboard, and the third always takes prizes in various sports competitions. Two are fierce predators, and the third is a small and defenseless baby, but this does not prevent her from fearlessly standing side by side with her unusual companions. Who are they? What unites them?

Of course, love for sports, because all three became the mascots of the 2014 Olympic Games, which will be held on February 7-23 in Sochi. Their path to glory was not easy: they had to bypass more than one rival and even compete with Zoich himself, but our heroes are not afraid of difficulties. Every day they have to meet with an enemy who is much more terrible - the winter cold, and she really does not tolerate carelessness and frivolity.

Polar Bear lives in the Arctic Circle. His house is made of snow and ice, as are all the things in it. The bear uses an ice computer, a cold bed and a snow shower. But he is not at all afraid of the cold - our athlete does not even suspect about the existence of the summer heat, because he grew up here.

Once upon a time, White Bear was sheltered by polar explorers, who taught him to ski and ice skate. However, most of all this unusual athlete fell in love with sleds. He became an excellent luge and bobsledder, whose victories are watched with joy by his faithful friends, seals and fur seals.

The leopard works as a mountain rescuer-climber. He is not at all afraid of heights and even settled in the crown of a huge tree growing on one of the highest rocks in the Caucasus. He will never refuse help, as the residents of the nearest village, whom he repeatedly saved from unpredictable avalanches, were convinced.

The leopard rarely leaves his beloved snowboard and has even taught this sport to his curious friends and neighbors. He is cheerful and playful, like any representative of the feline tribe, and simply loves incendiary dances.

But little Bunny has not yet decided what her profession will be, but she knows for sure that she will connect her life with her favorite sport. While she is an excellent student at the Forest Academy and diligently helps her mother in their small family restaurant called "Forest Dam", where it is always cozy and fun. And, of course, he never refuses to sing and dance.

The current talismans were chosen, as they say, "by the whole world." The final results were announced on February 26, 2011 on Channel One. In the TV show "Talismania. Sochi 2014. Final ”announced the registration of 1.4 million votes of viewers who expressed their opinion. Leopard won 28.2% of the vote, White Bear - 18.3%, and Bunny - 16.4%.

Of course, not everyone agreed with this choice. For example, in an alternative vote in in social networks On VKontakte and on Facebook, the Bunny did not pass the selection, giving its place to Santa Claus, and the residents of Sochi themselves preferred Dolphin on skis, which they announced back in 2008.

Most of all, critics do not like the round head of the Polar Bear and its resemblance to the mascot of the 1980 Olympics Misha, which the artist Viktor Chizhikov himself does not deny. In addition, many believe that the Leopard should not be white, because then it strongly resembles, which, as you know, never lived in the Caucasus.

However, the deed is done. According to Dmitry Chernyshenko, President of the Sochi 2014 Regional Committee, Leopard, White Bear and Bunny "have already become part of the history of the world Olympic movement!"

Surprisingly, the first mascot of the Winter Olympics appeared at the most modest games in history - in the Austrian Innsbruck in 1976. Why the most humble? The fact is that the tournament was organized in a hurry, after the American Denver refused to hold the competition.

Mascot of Innsbruck 1976, the first mascot of the Winter Olympics. Photo: wikipedia.org

The mascot was a snowman named OlympiaMundle... Although all the traditional attributes inherent in a snowman are present in him, it is difficult to call him a full-fledged snowman. Yes, there were arms, legs, a carrot nose. Snowball ... Yes, exactly one snowball. But the organizers and spectators fell in love with this "polar kolobok", and the tradition of inventing talismans for the Winter Olympics continued.

Lake Placid 1980

Four years later, the United States nevertheless rehabilitated itself, finally organizing the Winter Olympics. It took place in Lake Placid in 1980. Naturally, these games also had their own mascot.

They were made by a cute raccoon skier named Roni... He also pointed out to the organizers the marketing advantages of the talismans. Thanks to the presence of a raccoon ski goggles and a hat, these products have become the most popular accessories in the games.

By the way, there is a legend that the raccoon Roni had a real prototype - the raccoon Rocky, who died shortly before the games. So the designers decided to create in his honor the first ever animal mascot of the Winter Olympics.

Sarajevo 1984

And on the eve of the 1984 Yugoslav Olympics, a real competition was organized among designers for the right to develop a mascot for the games. Although characters such as Snowball, Chipmunk, Mountain Goat, Porcupine and Lamb made it to the finals, the victory was won by the wolf, known for its aggressive disposition and negative roles in almost all works of art.

The designers were faced with the task of making it as minimally aggressive and as friendly as possible. The result was one of the most charming talismans in the entire history of the Olympics, remembered not only for his open smile, but also for his bright orange scarf with a snowflake. The sales of real scarves during games, as well as toys, broke all records.

The wolf cub was called Vuchko, which in translation means "wolf cub".

Calgary 1988

In 1988, two mascots of the Winter Olympics were presented for the first time in Canada. They were two polar bears Heidi and Howdy... According to legend, they were inseparable brother and sister.

The bears were dressed in cowboys, because it was in Calgary that one of the largest country festivals was held annually at that time. The names of the animals were chosen from 7000 entries sent by fans. The organizers liked the idea to convey the spirit of unity through the names of the characters, so Heidi and Howdy were chosen - derivatives of the English and Western American greetings "hi" and "hou".

Albertville 1992

Four years later, the mascot was left alone again. Initially, the French introduced the world to a chamois named Chamois... But she did not win the people's love, and for the first time in the history of the Olympics, on the eve of the start of the games, there was a "forced replacement" of the character.

The gnome is the new mascot of games Magic... The choice of the fairy people as the "race" for the Olympic character, according to the idea of ​​the organizers, was to personify the imagination and dreams associated with sports. The gnome itself was made in the shape of a star, which showed the desire for the stars on the part of athletes.

Lillehammer's talismans. Photo: wikipedia.org

Lillehammer 1994

The Norwegian Olympics were the first winter games to be held in more than one year with the summer - just two years after the previous Olympics in France. And for the first time, not fairy-tale characters, not animals, but people became symbols.

Heroes of fairy tales, brother and sister were chosen as talismans Haakon and Christie with a typical Scandinavian appearance. The toys were sold in millions of copies, but at all official ceremonies the role of mascots was played by ordinary children dressed in national clothes.

Nagano 1998

The Japanese surpassed all, who prepared four talismans for their winter games in Nagano in 1998. The originally planned ermine named Okoy was replaced by four cute, poisonous-bright owlets. Their collective name is - Snowlet, which, using a play on words in English, can be translated into our language as "Snowy owls", if literally, then "Snowy", or "Snowy".

Both the owlets and the number four were not chosen by chance. The owl is a symbol of wisdom, and the organizers wanted to hint at the Olympic, sporting wisdom of the games. And the number four ... There are four seasons in a year: autumn, winter, spring and summer. There are four elements in the forest: wind, water, fire and earth. The Olympics are held every four years ... Everything is logical.

Salt Lake City 2002

Slightly more modest in the number of talismans were the Americans, who again took winter Games, but already in the city of Salt Lake City. There were three mascots. True, they were all represented by different animals: a hare, a coyote and a bear. The legend associated with their appearance intertwines the ancient Greek motto of the games "Faster, higher, stronger" and Indian legends passed from mouth to mouth.

Salt Lake City 2002 mascots. Photo: wikipedia.org

According to an ancient Indian legend, when the low sun severely dried up the land, the fastest hare caught up with him and wounded him with an arrow. The offended sun went behind the clouds, and coolness returned to the earth. Soon, without the sun, it became dark and cold. Then the dexterous coyote climbed to the top of the highest mountain and stole fire from the gods. The grizzly bear is the most powerful hero in legends. The best hunters couldn't handle it. And even now they chase him in the night sky in the form of constellations. Thus, animals are clearly associated with the phrase "Faster, higher, stronger!"

It was decided to name the animals by the name of the three main articles of the city's income: gunpowder, copper and coal. Tracing paper from English names sound like this: hare Powder, coyote Coper and the bear Cole.

Turin 2006

The mascots of the Italian games in Turin in 2006 for the first time in history and the only time so far were inanimate characters - the snow girl Neve and the ice boy Glitz.

To create their heroes, the organizers used two main conditions of water used in the Winter Olympics - snow and ice. The result is graceful and flexible, like figure skating, a girl made of snow and strong, straight, purposeful, like skating, boy Glitz.

Talismans of Turin 2006. Photo: wikipedia.org

Vancouver 2010

In Vancouver in 2010, two talismans were also presented, which became true hybrids from reality and Native American legends. Kuatchi- a young and active male who wants to be friends with everyone and loves to explore the world around him. It resembles the legend of "Bigfoot" - Bigfoot, who, according to Indian legends, lives in the forests North America... He dreamed of becoming a famous hockey player. The second character is Miga... A small and nimble girl, with her outlines referring to the legends about the sea bear - a killer whale, which, going out onto land, is able to take the form of a bear and wander through cities and villages. Miga was fond of snowboarding.

The two main characters were complemented Sumi, invented for the Paralympics and incorporating the images of a killer whale, a bear and a thunderbird, as well as an unofficial but beloved character, the Vancouver marmot Muqmuk.

Vancouver mascots 2010. Photo: wikipedia.org

Sochi 2014

In the first Winter Olympic Games, which will be held in Russia in 2014, there will again be three mascots. Thanks to the popular vote, it was not the "hypnotoad" Zoich that won, as many bloggers still believe, but the leopard, polar bear and the bunny.

It is interesting that initially, simultaneously with the presidential elections in Russia, elections for the symbol of the Olympics were also held at polling stations in Sochi. Residents of the Olympic Games capital voted for a dolphin on skis. But their opinion was not heard, and the organizers decided to determine the talismans by popular vote. It is interesting that when choosing the finalists, the "authoritative" jury ignored the opinion of the majority and did not include the first two places in the list of applicants for the honorary title.

Sochi 2014 mascots. Photo: RIA Novosti

Interestingly, Santa Claus was also excluded from the list of candidates a few days before the vote. This was due to the fact that in case of victory, the national symbol of our country would have passed into the possession of the International Olympic Committee for a long time.

Russia has become a host country for the Olympics from all over the world for the second time. in 1980, Russia hosted the Olympics in Moscow for the first time - it was the 22nd Summer Olympics. The lucky mascot of the Moscow Summer Olympics was Misha the bear, who flew into the cloudless sky in a balloon on the day of the closing of the Olympics.

For the second time, Russia has the honor to host athletes from all over the world at the Olympics. At the 119th session of the IOC in Guatemala, it was decided to select the Russian city of Sochi for the Winter Olympic Games. sporting events... Planned by the International By the Olympic Committee Winter Olympic Games will be held in Sochi from 7 to 23 February 2014

To the main sports festival not only the Black Sea resort of Sochi is being prepared, but the whole country. The scale of construction, unfolding on the territory of the city of Sochi, and in nearby towns and villages of the Krasnodar Territory is enormous.

Not only the members of the IOC commission, but also all Sochi residents can see with their own eyes how quickly and efficiently the construction of Olympic facilities is proceeding - Ice Palace, mountain tourist center, palace winter sports, arena and many others.

The old highways of the Krasnodar Territory have been expanded and new roads have been laid leading to the Olympic venues, new sports hotels, hotels, cottages in Sochi have been built, which are ready to receive both athletes and fans of the future Winter Olympics.

What will be the main mascot of the Sochi Winter Olympics? This issue was actively discussed all over Russia, thousands of drawings of future talismans made by professional artists and, simply, by amateurs, appeared on the Internet and the media.

The Olympic mascot must reflect the motto Olympic movement – “Citius, Altius, Fortius!"- and the very principle of the Olympics, which was defined in 1896 by Pierre de Coubertin:"The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not victory, but participation, just like in life, the most important thing is not a triumph, but a struggle."

From childhood, it seems to us an inhabitant of the North Pole and the polar Arctic. A strong, fast and graceful animal can easily be the winner of curling, bobsleigh, tobogganing, competitions in speed skiing and skating.

The second character is no less interesting - graceful, light and flexible snow leopard.

It is the fastest animal in the animal kingdom, its running speed is 16 - 18 meters per second. For him, 8-10-meter long jumps and 4-meter high jumps are easy and common. The leopard is the most perfect cat living in the Caucasus mountains, easily and freely climbs rocks and trees, as if on the ground.

Yielding to a lion and a tiger in size, the leopard always wins in agility and swiftness of movement, he has an instant reaction and lightning-fast attack.

Hare they love for their light and cheerful disposition, their willingness to always come to the rescue. It is known that in the wild, rabbits will always feed not only their own, but also strangers' rabbits left without a mother. The hare knows how to be friends, take care of and win over.

In the Sochi House olympic mascots guests of the Olympics will also get acquainted with Ray and Snezhinka - talismans