While visiting Sochi, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin attended the start of several athletes and also spoke with referees and Irina Gromova, the head trainer of the Russian national cross-country skiing and biathlon team, as well as other trainers.

The prime minister tried his hand at cross-country shooting from the prone position using both a standard biathlon rifle and a rifle for visually impaired athletes, which emits an audio signal when the weapon is aimed correctly.