Leopard, polar bear and hare were chosen mascots of the 2014 Winter Olympics following the results of an all-Russian SMS-voting which finished on Saturday.

The winners were announced at an evening 115-minute TV show on Russia's largest broadcaster Channel One. The online voting on the channel's website began at 3 p.m. Moscow time [12:00 GMT].

When the voting was about to start, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said he likes leopard to become the official mascot. The leopard received 28% of the votes, 18% and 16% voted for the polar bear and the hare, respectively.

Fire Boy and Snowflake were selected mascots for the Paralympics.

Father Frost, one of the potential mascots, dropped out of the contest. This decision was taken, because he is the symbol of the New Year in Russia.

MOSCOW, February 26 (RIA Novosti)