There were more than 30 extra anti-avalanche devices which have been installed at the Roza Khutor ski resort in Krasnaya Polyana, set to stage alpine skiing during the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympic and Paralympics Games.

The installations greatly reduces the risk of avalanches at the venue; the area's managing director Alexander Belokobylsky claiming that safety was the primary concern.

As part of the series of test events Sochi is staging in 2012, Russia is hosting Alpine World Cup events in February  so they have tried to find a balance between the quality of the competition and the safety concerns.

"We had too much snow at the top of the course so we decided to lower the start of the men's event," Belokobylsky told Reuters.

"The athletes' safety is a paramount concern so you don't want to jeopardise it in any way. "But at the same time, you don't want to compromise any of the sporting elements, especially because a World Cup race is a top-level event compared to the Europa Cup. "So we added 30 extra [devices]. "We had four last year -- now we have 34."

The Krasnaya Polyana mountain range is the location for the cluster of outdoor events which also includes bobsleigh, luge, ski jumping and biathlon.