Russia has changed both physically and mentally from hosting the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games to the current Sochi Paralympic Games, The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) head Philip Craven said Monday.

Craven said that Russia and the Games had made Sochi a barrier-free city for Paralympians and for disabled people.

"We don't talk about things being accessible for persons with impairment, we say, get it right for everyone, and everyone is happy. That's what's happened here with the new buildings," he told reporters.

According to him, the changes made in Sochi would gradually take place in the entire nation. "What's happened here is going to be spread to the 80-plus regions across Russia, over time," he added.

Yet the great changes won't take place immediately and will take time, he admitted, "but the dedication is there and the commitment for it to happen," he noted.

While the transformation of the barrier-free environment of Sochi will spread across Russia, negative perceptions towards people with impairment will also change as a result of watching the athletes engaging in "mortal combat" at the Sochi Games, according to the IPC president.

As people watch the competitions and feel the strength of human spirit, they will gradually have barrier-free minds towards disabled people, and it is the time when the society makes real progress, he concluded.