2014 Sochi Winter Olympic Opening Ceremony (entire ceremony)

www.olympicceremony.org

2010 Vancouver - Pyeongchang 2018

XXII Olympic Winter Games

Sochi, Russia
2014

Troika pulling the sun, thawing the ice in the Opening Ceremony segment "Rite of Spring"

Olympic Ceremony Records
italics indicate records at the time

• First entrance of the Parade of Nations from below the stadium floor
• Most Nations Competing in an Olympic Winter Games - 88 (previous 82 Vancouver)
• First continuous use of projections
• First use of prop trains above the stadium floor
• Most expensive Olympic stadium (est. $750 million - $1 billion)
• First stadium specifically built for an Olympic ceremony

Opening Ceremony

Fisht Olympic Stadium (40,000)
February 7, 2014

Official Report

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Official Video
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Opening Ceremony Highlights

The Sochi opening ceremony was one of the most elaborate in the history of the Olympic Games.  Notably, the enormous props, guided through the stadium with the help of a train system on the roof provided some of the most elaborate scenes in Olympic ceremony history.  The ceremony was a tribute to the history of Russia as told through its various rich art traditions including ballet, music, and literature. Concerning the size of the ceremony, with a custom built stadium with a custom built roof for moving props held in massive containment buildings adjacent to the stadium, the Sochi opening ceremony was the most expensive ceremony ever produced.  With reported stadium costs and ceremony budgets, the production easily exceeds $1 billion; if true, it would be the first in history to break that mark.

A malfunctioning Olympic ring blighted an otherwise emphatic reception of the ceremony, which featured world famous musicians, thousands of dancers and volunteers, and a massive recounting of the history of Russia.  Sochi took much of the recent evolution of the Olympic ceremony to massive proportions, and although few true innovations occurred, the Sochi ceremonies perfected the projection techniques first implemented by Vancouver in 2010, the suspension of massive props first implemented by Sydney 2000, and narrative film elements first implemented by London 2012.  With Sochi, the Olympic Ceremonies are now trending toward productions of living cinematic art.

Viewers' Guide

0:00:00 - Pre-Ceremony Entertainment

0:20:39 - Opening Flyover

0:34:40 - Cyrillic Alphabet Countdown Film

0:38:44 - Artistic Segment - Flight through Russia

0:45:00 - Introduction of the Presidents of the Russian Federation and IOC
0:46:00 - Russian National Anthem
0:50:30 - Olympic Torch Relay Film
0:52:30 - Parade of Nations
1:49:00 - Giant animatronic mascots of Sochi 2014
1:51:07 - History of Russia Film
1:54:00 - Artistic Segment - Rite of Spring
2:02:00 - Artistic Segment - Peter the Great
2:06:30 - Artistic Segment - War and Peace
2:13:00 - Artistic Segment - Russian Revolution
2:21:00 - Artistic Segment - 20th Century
2:29:00 - Olympic Torch Relay Film
2:31:00 - Speech by SOCOG President
2:37:30 - Speech by IOC President
2:47:00 - Vladimir Putin Opens the Games
2:48:00 - Artistic Segment - Doves of Peace
2:52:00 - The Olympic Flag and Anthem
3:00:00 - Olympic Oaths
3:03:30 - Artistic Segment - Olympic Gods
3:08:45 - The Olympic Flame
3:14:00 - Firebird, Finale, Fireworks

Photos

Sochi Olympic Medals

Sochi Olympic Logo

Sochi Olympic Torch

Sochi Olympic Stadium and Cauldron

Girl flies through the topography of Russia

Malfunctioning Olympic Ring

Opening Ceremony segment remembering those lost in WWII

Opening Ceremony segment commemorating the USSR

Doves of Peace

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