The negativity has melted away as sporting action has grabbed the headlines at Sochi and Russian President Vladimir Putin seems to be everywhere at the Sochi Olympics these days.
Julia Lipnitskaya has announced her arrival as the new darling of women's figure skating by helping Russia win gold in the inaugural team event.
Japanese figure skater Mao Asada, who rebounded from a disastrous short programme at the Sochi Olympics to gain the best score of her career in the free skate, is now wavering on whether to retire from competition.
Now that the 2014 Winter Olympics have come to a close, rediff.com brings you the moments that will be etched in memory. During the two weeks in Russia fans have seen a number of inspiring stories. Some will go into future Games, while some represent the end of an era.
A transgender former member of Italy's parliament was detained by Russian police for the second time in 24 hours on Monday for trying to stage a gay rights protest at the Winter Olympics.
The honour of lighting the Sochi Olympic flame was given to two triple Olympics champions on Friday as Vladislav Tretyak and Irina Rodnina jointly lit the cauldron at Russia's first Winter Games on Friday.
Lanny Barnes is heading to the Sochi Olympics with all the incentive in the world after her twin sister gave up her own spot in the biathlon to let her compete for the United States.
Lewis Hamilton became the first Formula One driver to win 100 races with a victory in Russia that sent him back on top of the championship.
Evidence of widespread state-sponsored doping by Russian athletes at the Sochi Olympics was confirmed on Monday in a report by an independent commission of the World Anti-Doping Agency.
The International Olympic Committee has no doubt Russian authorities will be able to provide security at the Winter Olympics, a spokeswoman said on Monday after two bomb blasts killed tens of people in the Russian city of Volgograd.
'We are now able to confirm a cover up that dates back until at least 2011 and continued after the Sochi Olympic Games. It was a cover up that evolved from uncontrolled chaos to an institutionalised and disciplined medal-winning conspiracy'
There will be no single snappy phrase to describe the Sochi Olympics at the closing ceremony on Sunday, International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach said, breaking with the organisation's tradition of decades.
Klitschko and his brother Vitali, also a former world heavyweight champion and now the mayor of Kyiv, have both taken up arms against invading Russian forces.
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has suspended Deputy Sports Minister Yury Nagornykh, who was named in a report on the doping of Russian athletes at the 2014 Sochi Olympics, the government said on Monday.
Lewis Hamilton has one big fight on his hands already this season and he is not spoiling for another, not even for charity and against the man with the broadest smile in Formula One.
Some members of Ukraine's Sochi Olympics team have decided to leave the Winter Games as widespread anti-government protests back home have left dozens dead and hundreds injured, the International Olympic Committee said on Thursday.
A top US intelligence official has said that there is a ''substantial potential'' for security threats against the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, but the key concern for an attack centers on locations outside the main event areas.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) on Monday recommended that the IOC and International Paralympic Committee should consider banning all athletes entered by the Russian Olympic Committee for next month's Rio Olympics.
Olympic downhill champion Lindsey Vonn partially tore her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and suffered a mild strain to her right knee after crashing during training on Tuesday, US ski officials said on Wednesday.
The decision by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), imposed a four-year ban on Russia participating in a range of top-flight sporting tournaments, a period covering the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics, the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and the 2022 soccer World Cup.
The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) on Sunday banned all Russians from its own Games next month because of the widespread doping culture that it says has polluted sport in the country.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) will not impose a blanket ban on Russia for next month's Rio Olympics over the nation's doping record but will leave decisions on individual athletes' participation with their sports federations, it said on Sunday.
A last-minute decision by the banned Indian Olympic Association to comply with IOC orders is a good first step for the country's gradual return to the Olympic fold, IOC president Thomas Bach said on Tuesday.
Russia asks World Athletics to postpone decision on possible expulsion.
Ester Ledecka became the first person in Winter Olympics history to capture gold medals in unrelated events after the Czech won the snowboard parallel giant slalom on Saturday to go with her stunning Alpine skiing super-G gold.
There will be no discrimination against gay people during the Winter Olympics in Sochi next month, a Russian lawmaker said on Monday.
The U.S. State Department warned Americans on Friday of the potential for terrorism at the Sochi Olympics but said it was not aware of any specific threat to U.S. citizens.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) records leaked by hackers raised a lot of questions with healthy athletes seemingly taking banned substances, TASS news agency reported.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said on Wednesday that another batch of athlete data has been leaked by the same Russian cyber espionage group that published confidential data earlier this week.
The four times world champion is enjoying his best start to a season since he was at Red Bull in 2011, leading Lewis Hamilton by seven points after two wins and a second place from the first three races.
Disruption and police intrusions marred Russia's first open Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) athletic competition this week, organisers said.
Russia will host the 2018 World Cup finals in 12 venues spread across 11 cities.
Germany had set out to equal their Vancouver 2010 performance and finish in the top three in the medals table at the Sochi Olympics but with two days of competition left, team chief Michael Vesper admitted they had failed.
An unnamed German biathlete has tested positive for a stimulant at the Sochi Winter Olympics, making it the first doping case at the Games in Russia, a German ski federation official said on Friday.
Russia and Ukraine will be put into different groups at the 2018 World Cup finals if the Ukrainians qualify and relations between the two countries do not improve, FIFA president Sepp Blatter said on Tuesday.
WADA identified Doctor Sergei Portugalov, former deputy director of the Russian Federal Research Centre of Physical Culture and Sports (VNIIFK), as the mastermind of the scheme, advising athletes on doping, administering injections and helping cover up positive drugs tests.
Ireen Wust of the Netherlands claimed a record 10th Olympic speed skating medal when she surged to gold in the women's 1,500 metres at the Gangneung Oval on Monday.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday
Terming the IOA-IOC saga as a turning point, Union Minister for Youth Affairs & Sports Jitendra Singh said the entire episode is a blessing in disguise for Indian sport.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Thursday
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