Brazil's economy "is heading for recession, the president is threatened with impeachment and a huge corruption scandal has engulfed the nation but Rio is riding a wave of confidence in its preparations to host the Olympics next year," according to Fonseca & Downie of REUTERS. The Games start on Aug. 5, 2016 and Pedro Paulo, the man coordinating the city’s Olympic projects, said that "most of the work will be completed on time." Paulo said, "Nothing is behind schedule when it comes to the Rio de Janeiro Olympics. City hall has prepared to host the Games from an economic and fiscal point of view." That claim, "while impossible to verify, is welcome because of the contrast" with the football World Cup. Work on most of the stadiums "was behind schedule and some of the promised infrastructure and transportation projects were never completed." Numbers released by the Foreign Ministry revealed that the Olympic village is 84% complete, and the swimming pool, media center and the three arenas that will host six indoor events "are all more than two-thirds ready." Among the venues where most work is needed "are the velodrome and the hockey pitches, which are only half completed." Money, meanwhile, "is not yet an issue but could be as Brazil's economy stalls." Accentuating matters "is a huge corruption scandal known by the code name 'Car Wash' that has put some of the country's biggest construction bosses in jail" (REUTERS, 8/4). In London, Paul Hayward wrote like a Carnival reveller "waking with a blurry recollection of the night before," Rio must have asked itself, "We did what?" If Cariocas thought last summer’s World Cup was a big deal, "wait till the Olympic spaceship lands." Football’s biggest tournament "was dispersed across this vast land." But the Olympics "consume a host city, squeezing 42 sports and 10,500 athletes into a single metropolis and demanding the full attention and commitment of its citizens." The whole planet, and all of its games and pastimes, "will descend on a city that is using the Olympic catalyst to transform infrastructure and erase favelas, mainly in favour of upscale property schemes" (TELEGRAPH, 8/5).
ON THE AIR: NBC's Natalie Morales said Wednesday marks one year to go before the start of the 2016 Rio Games, and it is "crunch time" in the city, as "every day, every hour now matters in the massive build up" to the event. Construction sites "are everywhere, from infrastructure like the new bus and metro lines to the city's two dozen Olympic venues." NBC's Matt Lauer noted, “With every Olympics the question is asked, ‘Will the host city be ready?’ Rio’s obstacles and challenges have dominated some of the headlines” (“Today,” NBC, 8/5).
RACE TO THE FINISH: The GLOBE & MAIL's Stephanie Nolen reported there is a "race to extend the metro line under the city and out toward the Olympic Park, and a dash to get the stadium and other facilities in the park finished." There also is "roadwork and sewage work and renovation of everything from beachfronts to the famous Sambadrome (which will be used for the marathon and archery events)." Many people believe Rio will see the same "last frantic push" that got Brazil ready for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, but that means some Olympic venues could be "hastily and shoddily finished" (GLOBE & MAIL, 8/5). In London, Jonathan Watts notes a handful of facilities "are already finished, including the Maracanã stadium," which will host the Opening Ceremony. IOC officials, who visit this week, "will be told that the others should be completed by the end of the year, including the velodrome, hockey grounds and a new Olympic golf course." The aquatic center, whitewater channels, mountain bike park and Deodoro stadium (which will host rugby) are "due to follow in the first three months" of '16. Cutting it closer will be the equestrian arena and shooting range, "which are not set for completion until after April, and the athletics stadium, which will stage its main test event -- the Ibero-American championships -- in mid-May" (GUARDIAN, 8/5).
