Russia released a special commemorative 100 rouble banknote in October 2013 in honor of the 2014 Winter Olympics (XXII), held in the southern Russia resort town of Sochi.
The special Russian Olympic banknote features a vertical design — a first for Russia. It is the second-ever Olympic-related banknote to be issued, after China’s 2008 Olympics banknote. The image of the snowboarder in mid-air was based on an idea by Pavel Bushuev, a student at the Russian Academy of Arts in Saint Petersburg. The Olympic stadium is on the other side. Alexander Baklanov headed the design team for the special banknote.
A total of ten million of these special commemorative Olympic Russian banknotes were issued, and they were available in a special gift box. The 2014 Winter Olympics were held from February 7 to 14, 2014; the Central Bank of Russia released the new 100 rouble banknotes one hundred days prior to the games — October 30, 2013.
