Rio pronounced ready for Games
‘All issues gone,’ new sport minister declares
Despite growing international concerns tied to the Olympics in August — from the Zika virus and polluted water to crime and political instability — Brazil’s new minister of sport said he was confident the Games would be successful.
“Brazil is completely ready for the Games,” Leonardo Picciani told USA TODAY Sports in an interview Friday. “Brazil and Rio de Janeiro worked hard and seriously in the last seven years to be prepared to host the Olympic Games. We are sure that we will have a fantastic Olympic Games. All the issues are gone, and all the venues are fantastic. The people of Brazil are excited to receive all the tourists, all the athletes. I am sure that the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro will be successful.”
Picciani was appointed to this position May 12, less than 90 days before the Olympics, by acting President Michel Temer, who stepped into that position after President Dilma Rousseff was
suspended by the senate to face an impeachment trial. The Olympics will take place Aug. 5-21 in Rio.
Despite taking over as the minister of sport so close to the Games, Picciani said he had faced few challenges because almost all the event venues were built and ready for competition by the time he stepped in. Only the velodrome is not finished, he said, though he estimated it was 92% complete.
Picciani also downplayed worldwide concerns about Zika, which is spread primarily through mosquitoes and can be transmitted through sex. As the Zika virus has spread in Brazil, there has been an unprecedented rise in the number of children being born with unusually small heads, identified as microcephaly, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) website.
Brazil’s ministry of health has been working closely with the WHO to make sure all the proper protocols are in place for the Games, Picciani said. The ministry of health has hired more than 2,000 health professionals, including doctors and nurses, to work during and after the Olympics.
Picciani said Brazil hosted 43 test events from June 2015 to April that involved 7,000 athletes and there were zero reported cases of Zika. That and the timing of the Olympics — August is winter in Brazil, so that means fewer mosquitoes — make Picciani con- fident the amount of Zika cases will continue to drop in the weeks leading up to the Games and will be close to zero in August.
His optimism contrasts with concern around the world for Olympic visitors. In May, more than 150 doctors called for the postponement or relocation of the Games in the name of public health because of Zika concerns.
A recent survey by the Annenberg Public Policy Center found that 59% of U.S. respondents said the Games should be canceled, postponed or moved to another country because of Zika. The survey of 1,023 adults had a margin of error of 3.7 percentage points.
According to Picciani, as of May there were 700 confirmed cases of Zika in Rio, down from 4,000 in April.
The country’s health ministry said in May that there were 1,326 confirmed cases of microcephaly associated with the Zika virus in Brazil, Reuters reported. More than 3,400 cases were still being investigated. Other Olympic topics:
Picciani reaffirmed his support for Russia competing in the Games amid an investigation into extensive doping by several of the country’s track and field athletes. “We hope that all the countries can participate in the Games,” he said. “But we will respect the IOC decision. We hope to receive Russia and all the other countries.”
The subway extension from Barra, where the Olympic Park is located, to Copacabana is expected to be completed Aug. 1, four days before the start of the Olym- pics. Picciani downplayed safety and testing concerns that accompany such a short window of time. “It is an important line to events of the Olympic Games,” he said. “On August 1, it will be fully operational for ticketholders, families and volunteers. After the Olympics, it will be open for the entire public.”
Picciani said the pollution in the waters of Guanabara Bay, where sailing will be held, was not located near and was no problem for other open-water events, which include marathon swimming, rowing, sprint canoeing and kayaking. “They are completely safe,” he said.
Seventy percent of the available tickets have been sold, Picciani said. “We expect to completely sell out,” he said.