With numerous Games’ 11,000 athletes and dozens of heads of state in attendance, the opening ceremony will be the first major test of Rio’s preparedness.
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Graphic projections of world cities being swamped by rising seas set Rio de Janeiro’s otherwise fun and festive gala apart from the more self-congratulatory and lavish celebrations that Beijing and London wowed with in 2008 and 2012. “It’s disappearing very quickly”. After all, nowhere parties quite like Rio.
The show drew homegrown stars, like supermodel Gisele Bundchen, who walked across the stadium to the sound of bossa nova hit “Girl from Ipanema”.
Before the actual ceremony began, the crowd enjoyed a fireworks show with a finale that spelled out “Rio” in sparks. The colossal Christ the Redeemer statue was bathed in Brazilian yellow and green. Dancers, all hips and wobble, grooved to thumping funk and sultry samba. The team which comprised of 16 officials are expected to excel in the which will be held in the Brazilian city of Rio between August 5-21.
Although I keep up with athletes in Olympic sports in non-Olympic years, the wait between Games always seems agonizingly long.
It was a visually stunning representation of a foundational element of Brazil’s identity and, while it may not be the moment in the ceremony that people will be talking about most as the Olympics play out, it provided an image that will stick with viewers.
However the opening extravaganza came as Brazil reels from political crises, economic woes and fears over Zika virus.
There was still time, however, for one last show of Brazilian exuberance, with the 12 drum sections from Rio’s main samba schools providing a rousing musical footnote to the evening. Heavily armed security stopped a small group of protesters from getting close to the stadium ahead of the ceremony.
Reflecting that beauty, a stunning Opening Ceremony depicted the rich and complex history and culture of Brazil.
Having witnessed many memorable clashes on its pitch, the 78,000-capacity Maracana Stadium today bore testimony to Brazil’s effort to make the world a better place, and how!
Overall, the atmosphere in the Maracana was celebratory, as a succession of actors, dancers and musicians raced through routines meant to showcase Brazil’s culture, diversity and history, even finding time for a brief lecture on environmental issues.
“My vision was to replicate the sun, using movement to mimic its pulsing energy and reflection of light”, Howe said.
Brazil’s interim President Michel Temer officially opened the games but his words were inaudible, drowned out by a resounding chorus of boos.
After taking office when leftist President Dilma Rousseff was put on trial in the Senate in the midst of a sweeping graft scandal, Temer has steered Latin America’s largest economy – and one of the world’s most unequal countries – sharply to the right.
Athletes from seven New Zealand teams taste action for the first time on Saturday (Sunday NZT) with the rowing, road cycling, equestrian, rugby sevens, swimming, hockey and men’s artistic gymnastics joining the Ferns who kicked off their competition on Thursday.
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She in turn handed it on to former Brazilian marathon runner Vanderlei Cordeiro de Lima, who had the honour of lighting the Olympic cauldron and setting the seal on an evening high on colour, verve and hope for the future.
