The Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics, officially the XXII Olympic Winter Games, were held in Sochi, Russia, from February 7 to 23, 2014. The Games’ emblem was unveiled on December 1, 2009, at a press conference in Moscow attended by IOC President Jacques Rogge and Sochi 2014 President and CEO Dmitry Chernyshenko.[1]
Design and History
The Sochi 2014 emblem was developed by brand consultancy Interbrand together with an Expert Brand Council established by the Sochi 2014 organising committee.[1] The mark was based on the organising committee’s international domain name, making it the first Olympic emblem to feature a web address.[1][2]
The emblem features the web address “sochi2014.ru”, with “Sochi” placed on top of “2014”, typographically mirroring each other. According to the organising committee, this mirroring was meant to reflect that Sochi is the meeting point between the sea and the mountains.[1] The Olympic rings sit beside the web address in their original colours.[1]
The emblem replaced an earlier bid-phase design featuring a star-shaped snowflake over a mountain.[2] Sochi 2014 CEO Dmitry Chernyshenko said the new emblem helped break Western stereotypes of Russia, presenting instead a modern country capable of reaching new audiences in a digital age.[2] The Games’ tagline, “Gateway to the Future”, was used to promote Sochi 2014 as a catalyst for long-lasting sporting, social, economic and environmental legacy.[1]
The broader visual identity for the Games, revealed in April 2011, was built around the principle of a “patchwork quilt”, a combination of 16 designs representing traditional Russian arts and crafts, ranging from Gzhel to Khokhloma. The Look of the Games concept was developed with support from BoscoSport, a tier one partner of Sochi 2014.[3]
Meaning and Symbolism
The “.ru” component of the emblem is Russia’s web-domain address, signifying that Sochi 2014 would have a clearly digital Games emblem.[1] The organising committee said the emblem was designed to provide a clear emphasis on reaching new audiences through digital platforms.[1]
The mirroring of “sochi” and “2014” was intended to evoke the reflection of the southern city’s unique coastal position on the Black Sea.[2] The emblem was rendered in blue lowercase lettering with no pictorial elements other than the Olympic rings.[2]
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