adminRIO DE JANEIRO. — Rio de Janeiro hosts the Olympic Games in less than four weeks, but crime and economic crisis mean the party-loving Brazilian city is glum and struggling to find its vibe.
Stadiums are just about ready and local businesses, hammered by Brazil’s deep recession, look forward to the arrival of an estimated 500 000 tourists.
For an already sports-mad city, the Games — the first ever held in South America — will be a delight. Some 10 500 athletes will compete over 19 days in 42 disciplines, with Brazil targeting a top 10 place in the medal count.
The setting for the globe’s most watched event will be breathtaking: sailors dueling below Sugarloaf Mountain, sprinters battling under the gaze of the Christ the Redeemer statue, and beach volleyball players scrambling on the sands of Copacabana.
Given Rio’s brilliance at annual carnival week, the opening ceremony in the famed Maracana Stadium on August 5 is likely to be spectacular.
But violent crime, 11 percent unemployment, fears about the mosquito-borne Zika virus, and embarrassing stumbles during infrastructure preparations have many Brazilians grumbling that the Olympics are little more than a costly distraction.
“The Olympics soak up the money that could be used on improving the life of people in Rio, rather than making cosmetic changes,” said Felipe, a 32-year-old lifeguard on Copacabana beach, who did not want to give his last name.
“They’ve sanitised everything, without the poor, and made it nice for foreigners.” Rio has defied doomsayers to open all the sporting facilities on time. But there have been worrying hiccups. — AFP.
Online Reporter