AP Interview: Sochi organizer looks back with pride, relief, sadness

SOCHI, Russia – After a 10-year journey to bring Sochi to the world stage, Dmitry Chernyshenko is feeling a mix of pride, relief and sadness as the Winter Olympics draw to a close.

Chernyshenko led Sochi's winning bid for the games and stayed on to head the organizing committee overseeing Russia's first Winter Olympics — in his hometown on the Black Sea coast.

As he strolled through the Olympic Park, shaking hands and chatting with Russian fans near the Olympic flame, surrounded by six gleaming new sports arenas, Chernyshenko said organizers had accomplished what they set out to do.

The 45-year-old businessman tells The Associated Press: "We feel from our side, everything we planned, we delivered, and what we promised, we kept."