The great Russian reinvention
The World Cup Sevens is just the appetiser as country follows China's path by using mega sporting events s to come out of its hibernation
The Russians are coming! A few decades ago, such a cry would have driven terror into the hearts of the West. Today they are being wooed right across the spectrum. Be it in business or sports, the world cannot get enough of new Russia.
As the Rugby World Cup Sevens, the biggest rugby carnival ever held in Russia, draws to an end today at the iconic Luzhniki Stadium (the stage for the 1980 Moscow Olympics) organisers from both sides - the International Rugby Board and the Russian Rugby Union - can pat themselves on the back for a job well done.
The tournament has turned the limelight squarely on a country eager for world recognition and which, like China before it, has recognised the fastest and best way to go about achieving this target is through sports.
If the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics was China's coming out party, then the World Cup Sevens was just the first of many preludes to Russia's big day - next year's Sochi Winter Olympics.
President Vladimir Putin has actively promoted Russian bids for mega sporting events as part of the country's shift towards a new image. Gone are the days of the Lada, instead flashy Mercedes, BMWs and Audis whiz through the streets of Moscow. Chic is in, dowdy out. The people are fashion conscious and would not look out of place in Paris.
