Rio Olympics 2016
Rio de Janeiro claimed a stunning victory in the race to host the 2016 Olympics thereby making Brazil the first South American country to host the games.
IOC president Jacques Rogge, who opened the envelope containing the name of the winning city, said: “All four projects are of the highest quality – thank you for your hard work, energy and commitment. But in every competition there can only be one winner.”
Chicago had been the bookies’ favourites to succeed London especially after US president Barack Obama flew into Copenhagen to address the IOC. Not to be left behind, King Juan Carlos of Spain, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and the Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama were also there to press for their cities.
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Chicago was knocked out in the first round of voting, followed by Tokyo, leaving a vote-out between Rio and Madrid. In the end Rio were convincing victors, beating Madrid by a wide margin, 66 votes to 32, in the final round as all the previous votes for Chicago and Tokyo swung behind them.Chicago had been knocked out after polling just 18 votes in the first round, compared to 22 for Tokyo, 26 for Rio and 28 for Madrid.
In the second round, Rio came first with 46 votes, Madrid had 29 and Tokyo were eliminated with 20. That left a head-to-head with Madrid. But Rio’s excellent campaign – masterminded by Mike Lee, who was communications director for London’s bid – proved enough.
Rio will host the summer Games just two years after Brazil host the 2014 football World Cup.
So often described as belonging to a “country of the future”, Brazilians found themselves living in the present this weekend. In Lapa, the fashionable centre of Rio de Janeiro nightlife, the partying was long and memorable. On Copacabana beach, the sand was packed with revellers. Pelé cried, and his compatriots celebrated the latest evidence that for one of the world’s most glamorous, charismatic countries the good times are starting to roll. For the citizens of Rio de Janeiro, winning the battle for the 2016 Olympic Games represents, above all, an opportunity to transform the city. It is estimated that something like R$25bn (£8.8bn) will be invested in infrastructure.
As expected, there was some criticism of the Brazilian bid from rival quarters. An etiquette-breaking Spanish criticism of the Rio bid found an echo with Alberto Murray Neto, a former IOC member: “The candidature of Rio is based on marketing and does not reflect what the city is really like. They contracted Mike Lee to sell an image that does not exist.”
Beyond the populist pressing of President Lula and the photo opportunities with Pele, there remain major flaws with the bid. Firstly popular support is questionable in Rio where football is king. Despite polls showing support at 90 per cent there is little sustained interest in many of the sports. Numbers at Friday’s party in Copacabana were boosted by schools and local government employees enjoying an improvised holiday.
