20 Facts About Sochi

Sochi hosted the XXII Olympic Winter Games and XI Paralympic Winter Games in 2014.

In 1923, Sochi acquired one of its most distinctive features, a railway which runs from Tuapse to Georgia within a kilometer or two of the coastline.

Sochi was established as a fashionable resort area under Joseph Stalin, who had his favorite dacha built in the city.

In 1961, Soviet officials decided to expand the city limits by forming a Greater Sochi which extended for 140 kilometers from the southern parts of Tuapse to Adler.

Additionally, Sochi has served as the location for the signing of many treaties, especially those between Georgia and the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia governing authorities.

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Greater Sochi is elongated along the Black Sea coast for 145 kilometers .

The biggest rivers in Sochi are the Mzymta, which is in fact the longest Black Sea tributary in Russia, and the Shakhe.

Sochi is unique among larger Russian cities as having some aspects of a subtropical resort.

Sochi has a humid subtropical climate, at the lower elevations.

Sochi is situated on the same latitude as Nice but strong cold winds from Asia make winters less warm.

Sochi is administratively subdivided into four city districts: Tsentralny City District, Lazarevsky City District, Khostinsky City District, and Adlersky City District.

Sochi is an important economic centre of Krasnodar Krai and Russia.

Sochi is one of the most popular tourism centres, as well as a prominent financial centre in Russia.

In 2010, Sochi headed the "Rating of Russian cities by quality of life" of the Urbanika Institute, and in 2014 and 2015 it ranked as 4th and 5th city respectively; experts noted the high rate of development of the city, large-scale investments on the eve of the 2014 Winter Olympics, favorable environmental conditions and high safety of residents.

In 2012, Sochi topped the rating of "30 best cities for business" in Russia, by Forbes.

Today, Sochi is an all-season resort of an international level; 705 classified accommodation facilities operate on its territory, including: 66 sanatoriums, 20 boarding houses and recreation centers and 618 hotels.

The importance of tourism for the development of Sochi is determined by the financial revenues from the industry.

Sochi is indispensable for Russian science from a geographical and climatic point of view.

Sochi is known for its sport facilities: a local tennis school spawned the careers of such notable players as Grand Slam champions Maria Sharapova and Yevgeny Kafelnikov .

In June 2006, the International Olympic Committee announced that Sochi had been selected as a finalist city to host the 2014 Winter Olympics and the 2014 Winter Paralympics.