The Formula 1 circus arrives this week in the Olympic city of Sochi to complete the seven-year deal agreed back in 2010 between ex-ringmaster Bernie Ecclestone and President Vladimir Putin. For decades like a dog with a bone, Ecclestone relentlessly tried and came close several times to a deal with Moscow. In early 2010 times were moving in Ecclestone direction as Putin was awash with oil revenues pre the global price crash and forthcoming economic sanctions. Putin had an ambitious strategy to attract international sporting events to promote the new dynamic Russia in a favourable light on the world’s stage. He was successful in winning the 2014 Winter and Paralympic Olympic games to be...
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