In February, a lack of snow forced freestyle skiing test events in the mountains above Sochi to be canceled, prompting fears that the subtropical Russian city might struggle to offer appropriately wintry weather at the Winter Games in February.
"There will be enough snow. The question is whether a snow cyclone could emerge unexpectedly during the competitions and really make life difficult for two or three days," said Alexander Frolov, head of state weather agency Rosgidromet.
"But it's important to preserve a calm attitude," he added.
Frolov also spoke of "a second risk — that competitions could be delayed, postponed or canceled" because of poor visibility due to cloudy weather, he said.
During the Olympics, between seven and 12 days will see snowfall in the mountains, with the remaining third of the Games likely to see sunshine with cloudy spells, Frolov said.
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