SOCHI: Persian leopard cubs have been born in Sochi National Park for the first time in 50 years as a result of a program to restore the population of these unique animals.

The program has been implemented within the framework of the "Games in Harmony with Nature" dimension of the Sochi 2014 Environmental Strategy. The program aims to contribute to the biodiversity preservation in the region in the lead up to the Sochi 2014 Games.

The parents of the "Olympic" cubs are leopards Zadig and Andrea, brought to the Persian Leopard Breeding and Rehabilitation Center in Sochi from Lisbon Zoo in October 2012. Young leopards are currently kept with their mother and will be released into the wild in the Caucasian State Nature Biosphere Reserve after adapting to the wild. Experts will continue to monitor the cubs’ health and development.

If the program continues its success in the future, a stable leopard population will be created on the territory of Russia in 10-15 years' time.

The President of the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee, Dmitry Chernyshenko, said:

"The birth of these leopards proves success of the Sochi 2014 Environmental Program. We are committed to staging Games in accordance with environmental and sustainable development principles and determined to protect endangered species such as the Persian leopard, which has become a symbol of the Olympic Games of 2014 in Sochi."

The Persian leopard is considered an endangered species and is on the Red List of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources and in the Red Book of the Russian Federation. Populations have been preserved in Iran, Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Turkmenistan. In Russia, Persian leopards in the wild are few and far between.

Sochi 2014