Lord Coe has said that boycotting sporting events solves nothing.

The ongoing Winter Olympics in Sochi were under threat of being boycotted by athletes because of Russia's ban on 'gay propaganda'.

"Sporting boycotts are absurd and fly in the face of any political judgement," the 57-year-old told reporters. "And, at an Olympic level, they've never achieved what they set out to do, other than penalise the competitors."

The opening ceremony of the Sochi Games will be held on Friday.