Each Olympic and Paralympic Games leave behind unique artifacts and commemorative items, which will be popular for many years among collectors and fans of the Olympic movement. Among the artifacts of the XXII Olympic Winter Games and XI Paralympic Winter Games are stamp merchandise, numismatics and, of course, mascots with the mark of the Games in Sochi.
Stamp Program
Postal and philatelic products have accompanied all the modern Olympic Games since 1896. Stamps issued by the country hosting the Games are an integral part of every Olympics and, without doubt, highly prized items in any stamp collection.
In the framework of the agreement concluded between the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee and the Federal Communications Agency, 4 print sheets, and 45 different postmarks, maximum cards and postcards will be released by the 2014 Games in Sochi, as well as sets of all the stamps issued in decorative booklets. The subjects shown on the stamp products will be winter sports, the Olympic sports venues and views of the Krasnodar Region.
All the stamp products featuring the logo for the 2014 Games are put on sale at branches of the Russian Post Office throughout the country. Furthermore, the Russian Post Office is offering a special philatelic subscription, under which subscribers will obtain all the stamps and other philatelic products on the Olympic and Paralympic themes over a period of four years.
Coin Program
The Sochi 2014 Coin Program is being introduced in 2011-2014 with the direct participation of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, "Goznak" FSUE and Sberbank of Russia. The program includes the release of coins made from both precious (commemorative and investment) and non-ferrous metals.
In 2011, the following coins were released into circulation:
- four silver coins in a series entitled "Modern sports featuring in the Olympic Winter Games", each with a face value of 3 rubles ("Biathlon", "Alpine Skiing", "Figure Skating" and "Ice-hockey");
- a gold coin with a face value of 1000 rubles, depicting "Sochi's Flora";
- a silver coin with a face value of 100 rubles and depicting "The Russian Winter";
- two gold coins in the series "Sports dating from the first Olympic Winter Games", with a face value of 50 rubles (depicting Bobsleigh and Curling);
- a coin made from non-ferrous metals with a value of 25 rubles, depicting the emblems of the Sochi Games on a background of mountains. This coin will be introduced into circulation as a cash denomination, with approximately 10 million such coins being released.
All of the coins made from precious metals will be available in any branch of Sberbank of Russia.
More detailed information can be received on the Bank of Russia website.
The Mascotst
The mascots of the Games in Sochi were selected during the All Russian voting live on Channel One on February 26th 2011, in which more than 1.4 million people took part. In its own way it was an "Olympic" record - the first time such a large number of people had voted in a live television show. The Hare, the Polar Bear and the Leopard were voted the Sochi Olympic Mascots while the Ray of Light and the Snowflake became the symbols of the Paralympic Games.
The Games' mascot cuddly toys, the Hare, the Polar Bear and the Leopard went on sale in December 2011 at the same time as the launch of the Sochi 2014 online shop.
The images of the mascots have already started to appear on collectible coins, stamps and credit cards.
