Sochi Games: Security jitters evident among Olympic athletes, US officials

Mounting threats to target the Sochi Games prompt some Olympians to tell their families and friends to stay home. US officials, meanwhile, offer some reassurances on security even as they make concerns clear.

[Updated Jan. 24 5:45 p.m.] American speed skater Tucker Fredrickss parents were on hand in Turin, Italy, in 2006 and Vancouver in 2010 to root for their Olympian son.But when Fredricks skates in the Sochi Gamesin Russiain February, his mom and dad will be at home where their son has asked them to stay out of concern for their safety.

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Normally, Olympic athletes encourage family and friends to attend the Games to cheer them on. But this year, as concerns mount over the threats that militants from Russian hot spots such as the Caucasus region where Sochi sits may pose to the Winter Olympics, more athletes from the United States and other countries are asking loved ones to stay home.

The list of countries to announce that their Olympic committees have received specific threats is growing. Hungary was the latest country this week to reveal it has received e-mails warning that its athletes could be targets.

Russia insists that the Games, set to kick off Feb. 7, will be safe and it has deployed an unprecedented number of security forces of all stripes to back up that vow.

On Friday, Mitt Romney, former Republican presidential nominee, told NBCs "Today" that he would feel confident sending his family to the Sochi Games. Mr. Romney, who was CEO of the 2002 Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the Winter Olympics that took place just months after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, said, Theres never been a Games I know of that have been so targeted for specific threats as youre seeing in Sochi, But it's also the case, he added, that the level of security preparations appears to be at an unprecedented level.

That appears to apply to both Russia and the United States. US officials, acting on their own threat assessments, are deploying resources to the Olympics site and to the area. The US is offering assistance and antiterrorism technologies to Russian authorities.

Publicly, US officials are acting to calm rising jitters about Sochi, even as agencies from the military to the FBI take steps to address security concerns and to prepare to evacuate American athletes in the event of terrorist attacks or other disasters.

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Sochi Games: Security jitters evident among Olympic athletes, US officials