Intro:

Russian spectator numbers at Rosa Khutor grew on Saturday (8 February), the first full day of competition at the 2014 Winter Olympics.

Script:

The Sochi Winter Olympics are now officially open and Russians have come out in force at the alpine resort of Rosa Khutor to support their athletes.

Ticket sales have been a concern, but Russian spectators have been travelling to events from other parts of the country.

Speaking on Saturday, Sochi 2014 committee head Dmitry Chernyshenko stated that there had been an incredible demand for tickets at venues.

Organisers in fact claim that more than 80 per cent of tickets to events have been sold.

Russians, who were allocated 70 per cent of the total available, have faced lengthy queues to collect their venue passes.

Despite the claims by organisers, sales in the remote southern city are a contrast to the 2012 London Olympics where Brits snapped up every one of the 8.8 million tickets available.

As the main events start over the next few days, it remains to be seen whether Sochi will prove a success from a spectator point of view.