Eleven of the 29 permanent venues for the Rio Olympics and Paralympics are operational and do not need to be renovated for the Games, organizers said Wednesday.
“Of the 29 permanent venues, 11 are operational, while eight require some renovation work and the other 10 will form part of the sporting legacy that is being constructed in the city,” organizers said in a press release. “Eight temporary venues will also be used to host competitions.”
Delayed preparations for the first Olympics in South America are under scrutiny after the International Olympic Committee’s Coordination Commission said in March that “every second counts” and mentioned a “necessary sense of urgency” in constructing venues.
IOC executive director Gilbert Felli said last week that construction at the Deodoro Complex was two years behind schedule. Deodoro is slated to house venues for BMX, canoe/kayak, equestrian, fencing, field hockey, modern pentathlon, mountain bike, rugby and shooting.
“We are advancing in the construction of competition venues for the Rio 2016 Games, with all of the basic and executive projects concluded or in the conclusion phase, and with foundation works in full flow,” said Alexandre Techima, the Rio 2016 Infrastructure Integration Director. “Even though they may not be highly visible, the preparative groundwork and foundation construction, that occurs underground, are extremely important for the final structure and often account for 20 percent of the total volume of construction.”
Two reports in the last week cited unnamed sources that London had been secretly asked if it could host the 2016 Olympics and that Moscow was being considered as a replacement as well. The Moscow report said the International Olympic Committee would decide if the Games would be moved from Rio after the Brazil World Cup (June 12-July 13), citing an IOC source.
An IOC spokesman shot down both reports.
