International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach has urged athletes and fans participating in Sochi winter games to trust the Russian authorities to keep them safe, despite heightened security fears.
More than 37,000 Russian police and troops are erecting a so-called ring of steel around the Black Sea resort following terrorist threats and suicide bombings that killed 34 people in Volgograd last month.
Bach said athletes would be censured if they protested against Russia's anti-gay laws from the medal podium.
He asked them to make their views clear in press conferences, The Guardian reports.
The IOC president also dismissed concerns that the spiralling cost and corruption allegations around the construction of the venues and infrastructure, would damage the IOC's image.
