The Sochi Winter Olympics will have plenty of snow, Russia's top weatherman predicted Monday.
Roman Vilfand sought to end any concerns about snow shortages by insisting that there would be a suitably wintry setting for the February 7 to 23 event in the mountains around the Black Sea resort.
"There is snow right now at all the Olympic facilities, and now it is possible to say with confidence that there will be a blanket of snow at all the Olympic venues" come Games time, said Vilfand, the director of Russia's Roshydromet weather agency.
He added that a layer of artificially produced snow would nonetheless be fired onto the slopes because "professionals prefer man-made snow."