China will stage a successful Olympic Games, the Russian ambassador to the country told Xinhua in an exclusive interview on Tuesday.

"Beijing has made careful preparations for the Games and we noticed many sports facilities have been improved in this city," Sergey Razov said.

"Beijing has built or renovated more than 10 stadiums, including architectural wonders like the 'Bird Nest' (the National Stadium) and the 'Water Cube' (the Aquatic Center).

"The Beijing Organizing Committee of the 29th Olympic Games (BOCOG) is far-sighted to build some of these stadiums on university campuses. This will be conducive to Chinese youth to have better achievements in sports."

Following the Games, the stadiums will be open to the public, according to BOCOG.

In the meantime, Beijing has also tackled environmental problems and intensified its measures to safeguard public security and ensure the safety of athletes and officials, Razov said.

"The newly-opened subways and expanded airport all display Beijing's concrete efforts to welcome the Games."

In total, 474 Russian athletes will make up the country's Olympic team. In addition, 148 will attend the Paralympics in September.

"We are pinning our hopes on sporting events such as boxing, wrestling, swimming, gymnastics, synchronized swimming, track and field, weightlifting, shooting and fencing," the ambassador said.

He also expressed hope that Russian athletes could set more Games records.

At the 2004 Athens Olympics, Russia won 92 medals, including 27 gold, ranking third overall.

(Xinhua News Agency July 23, 2008)