Circle the area on this map
B. Sochi sprawls 90 miles along "Russia's Riviera" on the coast of the Black Sea. Olympic ice events are being held at indoor facilities among the palm trees of Sochi, while outdoor events are taking place about a 30-minute train ride away at a ski resort in the mountains.
C. The Rosa Khutor alpine ski resort where the outdoor events are being held is in the Western Caucasus Mountains. Since the fall of the Soviet Union more than two decades ago, the Caucasus region has been the site of civil wars and terrorism as various groups fought Russian control. Olympic security is extremely tight.
A. In 2008, Russians successfully fought Georgia over two regions which wanted to secede from Georgia. Russia recognized the two areas as independent nations. But, most nations still consider the regions part of Georgia, including the Abkhazia area near Sochi.
D. The Ottoman Empire was based in what is now Turkey and once controlled all of the Black Sea as well as Southeastern Europe, the Caucasus, Western Asia and North Africa. After defeating the Turks, the Russians fought local people to control the territory on the Black Sea, killing or expelling nearly the entire population. The area was then colonized by Russians, Armenians, Ukrainians, Belorussians, Greeks, Estonians, Germans, Moldavians, Georgians and other people from inner Russia.