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Russian Olympic team will be finalized January 19

Russia’s Minister of Sport, Vitaly Mutko, said a total of 364 Olympic and 105 Paralympic athletes participated in training ahead of the Sochi Olympics

© ITAR-TASS/Alexey Nikolski

MOSCOW, January 16. /ITAR-TASS/. All athletes who will compete in the 2014 Winter Olympics as part of the Russian national team will be selected by January 19, Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko announced at a session of the Cabinet on Thursday.

He said that a total of 364 Olympic and 105 Paralympic athletes participated in training ahead of the Sochi Olympics. “Currently we have received 218 Olympic licenses, confirming the right of Russian athletes to participate in the Games,” the Minister said, adding that selection process will continue until January 19.

He said that Russian national teams for various sporting events at the Olympics are equipped with everything necessary; there’s also a new labor payment system in place.

“Implementing the preparation program allowed use to increase competitiveness of Russian athletes on the international arena. In Vancouver we competed in 6 out 15 events, here we compete in 11. We added short-track, freestyle, women’s hockey, curling and skeleton,” Mutko noted.

The minister reminded that monetary awards for athletes have been established as well: 4 million rubles for a gold medal, 2.5 million for silver and 1.7 million for bronze.

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