Opening English

From MT:

"Putin Rolls Out His English for IOC Opening in Sochi"

President Vladimir Putin concluded the 126th session of the International Olympic Committee in Sochi on Tuesday evening just as he delivered Russia's appeal to committee voters in Guatemala in 2007 before they chose a city for the Winter Games: in English. "Dear friends, ladies and gentlemen! I declare the 126th IOC session open," Putin said at the ceremony, Interfax reported. He went on to point out that when the decision to award Sochi the honor of hosting the games was made, only 10 to 15 percent of the infrastructure was ready. Putin said that the IOC trusted the strength of Russia and the Russian character, which has no fear of difficulties. He had arrived in Sochi earlier in the day to begin his role as host to visitors three days before the opening ceremony.

Olympic Committee and the Russian winter Olympians before a flurry of meetings on Thursday with foreign dignitaries including Chinese President Xi Jinping, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan. A Kremlin statement said that Putin will hold a reception for more than 40 foreign heads of state and government officials before Friday's opening ceremony. Some prominent Western leaders will be noticeably absent from the Olympics, including U.S. President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron. Gay activists previously called for a boycott of the games to protest Russia's "gay propaganda" law, which prohibits promoting homosexuality to minors, though Obama and Cameron said that their decisions not to attend were based on their schedules.

^ I would have liked to hear Putin speak English. The majority of Russians I have heard speak English do so with such a horribly thick accent it would be better for them to simply speak in Russian. For most countries it is the young that can speak English well while the older generations tend to speak it, but with more of an accent. I have met very few Russians (of any age) that can speak English well. I understand that English is difficult for foreigners to learn (just as Russian is for a non-Russian) but unlike Russian, English has been the sole international language for the past 5 decades and is used in countless international situations (ie science, trade, travel, politics, etc.) Knowledge of English helps people communicate even when none of them are native-English speakers. ^

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/sochi2014/Putin-Rolls-Out-His-English-for-IOC-Opening-in-Sochi.html