It's been almost exactly six months since the Sochi Olympics wrapped up and the world promptly moved on to speculating about the Rio 2016. Since then, the area has been left holding the proverbial bag—which as Russian photographer Alexander Belenkiy shows us, is full of too many buildings and not enough people to occupy them.


Belenkiy visited Rosa Khutor, a town near Sochi that hosted the alpine events, in early August to shoot the town on its six month anniversary of the Olympics, and he describes what he found as a "ghost town," a "huge wasteland" that's "abandoned." Now, in fairness, it's the summer season in the region, and it's worth pointing out that Sochi is preparing to open Russia's first F1 racetrack, which could serve to bolster tourism. Still, his photos paint a bleak picture, showing a town that's all but abandoned, strewn with toilets that were never installed and stacks of bricks that never made it into actual walls.


It's a sad scene—and it's one that's been repeated across the world as Olympic host cities struggle with the economic burden of their investments. A few weeks ago, we looked at how the Olympic Village in Athens is now in ruins. Unless something changes, it seems Sochi and the towns around it could eventually follow in its path. [Alexander Belenkiy]

Update: A commenter points out that Rosa Khutor is near Sochi and hosted the alpine skiing events for both the Olympics and Paralympics. The post has been edited to reflect the difference.



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