MOSCOW (AP) — A senior Olympic official has praised the pace of Russia's preparations for the 2014 Winter Games in the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

Less than 500 days away from the games, IOC coordination commission chairman Jean-Claude Killy on Thursday said he saw "huge progress in terms of Olympic venue construction."

Killy and his colleagues are wrapping up a scheduled three-day visit to Sochi to inspect progress in construction, transportation, accommodation and other key areas.

Russia's deputy prime minister Dmitry Kozak, who was hosting the delegation, confirms that the games are still within the budget of $6.4 billion. Killy describes the cost as comparable with Olympic budgets in London and Beijing.