Amid simmering political and social tensions, Brazil is also on alert for protests ahead of Friday’s gala opening ceremony with heads of state from at least 45 countries expected at the Rio Olympic stadium. It was an initiative driven by the Brazilian government to mark the countdown to the day before the opening ceremony of the Olympic Summer Games, scheduled at 20.00 (Brazilian time) on Friday (early Saturday morning in India), the Brazilian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
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Among the participating cities were Athens, Buenos Aires, Madrid, Mexico City, Lima, Paris, Atlanta, Doha, Johannesburg, Beijing, Sydney, and Tokyo, EFE news reported.
Residents have faced hours of traffic jams in recent days as new express bus lanes ferrying athletes and visitors to sport venues take up highway space, leading Mayor Eduardo Paes to declare Thursday the fourth city holiday of the Games. It will be illuminated with the red and white colours of Japan when a Japanese athlete wins a gold medal In Rio de Janeiro.
With a little bit of chaos and a last-minute sprint on preparations, Rio de Janeiro was ready on Friday to revel in a moment seven years in the making: the opening of the Olympic Games.
As the Olympic torch relay reached Rio, there were fresh signs that strife could disrupt the games.
Three-time World Cup champion Pelé says he was invited to light the cauldron at the opening ceremony, but sponsorship deals could stop him from performing the prestigious task.
The iconic Maracana Stadium will host a pulsating gathering for more than 70,000 fans, 10,400 athletes and dozens of world leaders as the first Olympics to be staged in South America gets under way.
Since the event won’t able to avoid the issues that are gripping Brazil – a president facing impeachment, a deep recession and environmental threats – organizers made sure that global warming and the environment, especially the country’s magnificent Amazon rainforest, are important parts of the Olympic opening ceremony. Some 50,000 spectators are expected, with some 3 billion people tuning in around the world as Brazil lifts the curtain on its second major sporting event in two years, after the 2014 soccer World Cup.
The Local Organizing Committee for Rio 2016 promises that it will just be one unforgettable night of Brazilian music and dance. Supermodel Gisele Bundchen will also be on hand.
The cauldron was designed by American sculptor Anthony Howe, who told The Associated Press he was inspired by life in the tropics.
The cauldron in central Rio is expected to be lit by a runner after the opening ceremony is finished, Howe said.
In what organisers have called a low-tech ceremony, Brazil will showcase its natural treasures and the cultural riches created by one of the world’s most diverse nations. The stadium does not have typical Olympic dimensions – there is no track. NBC will broadcast the opening ceremony on a one-hour tape delay because it wants the extravaganza to be shown completely in US prime time.
Like many in Rio, however, Ferreira said citizens had not received benefits like better transport and sanitation promised in the Olympic bid: “It cost a lot of money, but I don’t see much of the legacy that was promised”.
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The troubled preparations for the Rio Olympics proved that the model for the Games could withstand the toughest challenges but the International Olympic Committee hoped it would not have to face such a stress test again, president Thomas Bach said on Thursday.
