The BBC World Service airs The Road to Sochi on Tuesday, February 4 at 0406 EST. The program will also air February 4 at 1006 EST and 1932 EST, Friday, February 7 at 2332 EST, Saturday, February 8 at 2032 EST and Sunday, February 9 at 1506 EST. The Road to Sochi follows the regular BBC World Service clock.

Program Duration: 26 minutes 30 seconds (or 30 minutes including news bulletins, billboards & promos)

Available to broadcast: February 4-10

Download: This program is also available to download from the Documentary section of the BBC Partner Site.

Description: Robin Lustig heads to Russia to investigate claims of corruption in the build up to the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

The July 2007 announcement that the 22nd Winter Olympics would be held in Sochi, was a surprise to many. Sochi was better known for its palm trees and Soviet-era sanitariums than for ski slopes. But Vladimir Putin’s intensive lobbying efforts swayed the International Olympic Committee. He saw the Olympics as an opportunity to showcase to the world a “new and modern Russia”, a country that had left behind its tumultuous era of transition and one eager to embrace global institutions and attract international investment.

But preparations for the games have been mired in controversy. Human rights groups have called attention to the alleged maltreatment of migrant laborers and Russia’s anti-LGBT policies. Environmental activists claim damage is being done to protected areas. With the cost of the games escalating from 12 billion pounds to 32 billion pounds there are serious accusations of corruption and criminality. Given that all Olympic host cities endure fierce criticism on various fronts in the lead-up to the Games, are the concerns about Sochi truly justified, or are they being exaggerated? Is this debate really about corruption or are the Games just a pawn in Russia’s intense political battles?

Robin Lustig heads to Russia to investigate the allegations. He speaks to local residents and city officials in Sochi whose lives have been affected. Boris Nemtsov, a prominent opposition leader and native of Sochi, describes how ‘billions’ have gone missing, relaying some of the absurdities – including a road which is so expensive it “could have been paved with gold”. Valery Morozov, a local businessman, explains how he paid millions in bribes to a government official and discusses how the Russian bureaucracy has made corruption systematic.

A Whistledown Production for BBC World Service.