The Russians are due to visit the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) headquarters in Colorado Springs as the two countries seek to bolster their relationship.

A delegation from the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) will also make a separate visit later this week.

"The Russian and Canadian officials visiting Colorado Springs this week are worldwide leaders in the Olympic Movement," said USOC President Larry Probst.

"Visits like the ones scheduled for this week allow us to get to know the individuals on a personal level and learn from their breadth of experience.

At the same time, given the history of the Olympic Movement in the US, hopefully we have some insights to offer our friends as well."

The leadership of the COC, including President Marcel Aubut and secretary general Jean R. Dupré, begun their visit to Colorado Springs today and will stay until Friday (January 21).

The Russian Olympic Committee (ROC), meanwhile, are due to arrive in Colorado Springs tomorrow as part of a two-day visit.

They will be led by Alexander Zhukov, the deputy Prime Minister of Russia, who was elected President of the ROC in May following Russia's disappointing performance at the Winter Olympics in Vancouver where they finished only 11th in the medals table.

The ROC team are due to travel Salt Lake City, host city of the 2002 Winter Olympics, for talks with officials from the US Ski and Snowboard Association as they seek to gather information for their preparations for Sochi 2014.

"We're thrilled to have the opportunity to host our friends from Canada and Russia and look forward to learning a great deal over the course of the next several days," said Scott Blackmun, the chief executive of the USOC.

"On a personal level, I'm also excited to showcase Colorado Springs and everything that our region has to offer."