2016 Rio Olympics – Opening Ceremony – Maracana – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – 05/08/2016.
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Director Fernando Meirelles was faced with a great challenge when he was assigned to orchestrate the Rio Olympics opening ceremony. “Given that the commercial load was very similar to London, we believe that consumption habits, such as binge-watching and ‘marathoning, ‘ have changed perceptions among the viewing audience regarding commercials”.
The ceremony was concluded with the lighting of the Olympic flame, a responsibility that was originally going to be performed by football star Pele, who had to rule himself out as a result of medical complications.
Around 10pm, at least three helicopters were sent above the stadium with orders to find the drones and destroy them, according to reports.
These are hard times for a country that was enjoying rapid economic growth when Rio won the right to host the Games but is now in recession and with a government in tatters.
Nuzman’s mention of government support for Rio 2016’s budget was briefly jeered but he was on safer ground when he told the crowd “the whole world is here”. Performers take part in the opening ceremony.
It is estimated almost half of the world’s population tuned into the four-hour event broadcast.
Although he was seated to the left of International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach, who was introduced to mild applause, Temer skipped the formal introduction and opted to simply take the microphone at the end of the ceremony.
Brazil’s flag being hoisted during the ceremony.
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.
A beaming Andy Murray led Team GB’s Olympic hopefuls into Rio’s Maracana stadium to a rousing ovation during the athletes parade.
Supermodel Gisele entered to the strains of the bossa nova classic “The Girl from Ipanema”, walking into the stadium to loud cheers.
“Somebody asked me the other day, ‘When did you realize you were so great?’ I said, ‘The day Michael Phelps broke my record, ‘ ” Spitz said in an address to the athletes.
So the athletes were recast as a “planters army”, each given a tree seed that they placed in a pod, which will in turn be planted in an “Athletes forest” near one of the venues.
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Marathon runner Vanderlei Cordeiro, who was denied victory at the 2004 Athens Games when he was attacked by a spectator, lit the cauldron on Friday after an exuberant show of Brazilian cultural touchstones and breathtaking fireworks.
