Andy Murray was credited with inspiring Team GB’s greatest overseas Olympic Games as a squad of triumphant athletes arrived home from Rio on a gold-nosed Boeing 747.
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Torrential showers continued unabated but it did not matter to the athletes who sported translucent raincoats with several of them singing, dancing and taking selfies during the almost three-hour-long closing ceremony.
A children’s choir also took center stage to sing the country’s national anthem, while other dance and music groups paid tribute to Brazilian culture throughout the program.
Congratulatory messages have poured in, with Prime Minister Theresa May saying she was “extremely proud” of the team’s achievement following the “amazing” games and wants to see that success recognised with honours.
Security fears, concerns over Zika, off-field scandals and organizational gaffes were relegated to the background as South America’s first Olympics ended in a blaze of color late Sunday with an exuberant closing ceremony.
Kenny matched Chris Hoy’s tally of six golds with three wins in Rio, while Trott won two of her own to take her total to four. History will talk about a Rio de Janeiro before and a much better Rio de Janeiro after the Olympic Games.
“Simply speaking, the theory of “high investment produces high output” also applies to the Olympics Games”, said the newspaper, which also blamed China’s fall on its athletes failing in disciplines it traditionally dominates, such as shooting, gymnastics and badminton.
“Justin has been absolutely outstanding, not only in the support of the Great Britain Olympic team but of golf in the Olympics as well, and to have athletes of that stature in addition to athletes who have medalled in five consecutive games and others defending titles, which they did absolutely successfully, was a very powerful thing”.
BYE BYE RIOBut at times it was hard to focus on the sporting triumphs taking place across the sprawling city.
But Lochte’s story quickly unravelled, enraging Brazilians and Americans alike.
Hopefully, Tokyo can do even better in 2020.
“Personally I hope I can inspire somebody”, she said.
Britain’s performance in Rio was the best by any country that had hosted the immediate preceding Olympics and Robertson, now a vice-president of the British Olympic Association (BOA) said the knock-on effect from London had played a part. Neymar’s game-winning penalty kick decided a shootout and clinched the men’s soccer gold medal for Brazil, a host that wasn’t a factor in the medal standings but got the gold that it probably wanted most. Many Rio residents could not afford tickets to events, leaving them feeling on the sidelines of the city’s biggest undertaking.
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“I can’t wait to get back home”. An impeachment vote in coming days could lead to the permanent ouster of suspended President Dilma Rousseff.
