How the US Hoped the Super Bowl Would Teach Russia About Sochi Security

Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images(SOCHI, Russia) — In 2012, an unlikely group rolled up to the Super Bowl in XLVI in Indianapolis.

While everyone else in the stadium was glued to the action on the field, David Rubincam and a gaggle of Russian officials were more interested in the security surrounding the event. Rubincam, then the Legal Attache at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, was the lucky American official who escorted them to the big game.

With Russia hosting the Winter Olympics in Sochi just two years later, the American side hoped to show them how the United States handles security for a major sporting event.

According to a U.S. official, the Russians were fascinated by how the Americans kept much of their security out of sight — a stark contrast to the Russian style of displaying overwhelming, and often stifling, force.

Since then, U.S. officials have complained about a lack of cooperation between the American and Russian security teams, saying the Russians have been reluctant to share information or accept help.

But have the Russians put any of the Super Bowl security tips into practice in Sochi?

Russian officials have not said so, but Russian President Vladimir Putin told ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos in an interview last month that his goal was to ensure that security at the Olympics is tight but not “in your face.”

Fans and athletes arriving in Sochi will notice a strong, visible police presence and can expect thorough searches at checkpoints to enter the Olympic village. But, as ABC News reported, most security assets, including plain clothes police and the military, are hidden from view.

Copyright 2014 ABC News Radio