Rio de Janeiro, Aug 22 (IANS) Amid a riot of colour combining tradition with modernity, Brazil showcased its cultural variety, paying tributes to the country’s music maestros, arts and dance forms, as the curtains came down on the 31st Olympic Games here on Sunday.
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An Olympic Council of Ireland statement said Rio police took “passports along with their phones and laptops” from Irish officials at the OCI office in the athletes Village.
While his praise vindicated the efforts of organisers who have been slammed for infrastructure deficiencies, poor spectator turnout and transportation troubles, Brazil sports fans had more pressing concerns on their minds on the penultimate day of the first Olympics in South America.
IOC President Thomas Bach speaks during the traditionnal end of the Games press conference on August 20, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro on the eve of the closing ceremony of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
“It is an iconic Olympic Games, a Games in the middle of reality”.
Victory would also hand the hosts their first gold medal in football.
“Never before in the 56-year history of the Paralympic Games have we faced circumstances like this”, IPC President Philip Craven said on Friday.
He reeled off the feats of Michael Phelps, Usain Bolt, Japan’s four-time wrestling champion Kaori Icho, American shooter Kim Rhode and her medals from six Games and South African 400m record-breaker Wayde Van Niekerk in a 300-word opening address that featured the words “icon” or “iconic” 17 times.
Amid heavy rains Sakshi Malik, the first Indian woman wrestler to win an Olympic medal, stood tall waving the Indian tricolour.
“With the Games the IOC has shown it is possible to organize Olympic Games in countries which are not at the top of the GDP (gross domestic product) ranking”.
However, Kendall would end her term as an International Olympic Committee member at the close of the Games later on Sunday (Monday NZT).
Off field scandals continued to simmer, with Bach cautioning against a rush to judgment in the case of European Olympic chief Patrick Hickey, jailed in Brazil as authorities investigate a black market Rio Games ticket ring.
Despite a lack of funds and construction delays, the organizers managed to put together the world’s biggest sports meet and transformed the city with its legacy. The hosts deployed about 85,000 security forces to safeguard the Games as crime rates had raised amid social instability. “United in our diversity, we are stronger”, Bach said.
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Spending on the event hasn’t pleased everyone, and pre-games polls showed most Brazilians were opposed to staging the Olympics.
