THIS MORNING INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE (IOC) PRESIDENT THOMAS BACH LANDED IN RIO, WHERE THE OLYMPIC GAMES ARE DUE TO TAKE PLACE FROM 5 TO 21 AUGUST.
Upon his arrival, President Bach was greeted by the President of the Rio 2016 Organising Committee and of the Brazilian Olympic Committee, Carlos Nuzman, and IOC Member in Brazil Bernard Rajzman. The President was also welcomed by a dozen volunteers coming from all parts of Brazil to support the staging of the Games.
President Bach said: “There are high expectations for these Games because of the passion Brazilians have for sport and their joy of life. We will have a great Olympic atmosphere a la Brazil here in Rio.”
“Of course, just a few days before the Games start there are always a number of issues to be solved. The Brazilians will solve them, and you can already feel the Olympic energy here at the airport and in the city with all the smiling volunteers full of excitement. We are looking forward to great Olympic Games. As you know, we have always had confidence in Brazil and the Brazilians,” he added.
From the airport President Bach travelled directly to the Olympic Village where he joined the meeting of the Chefs de Mission. Some 129 delegations, out of the 206 that are expected to take part in the Games, have already registered, and 2,000 people have already taken residence. The President then had breakfast with officials and athletes.
Commenting on his visit, President Bach said: “The Olympic Village will be fantastic. We have received assurances that the few remaining challenges will be overcome by Friday. The teams are in general very happy, the athletes are happy, they like the food, they like the Olympic atmosphere and you can feel the excitement building up.”
President Bach will chair a series of meetings in the coming days, including the IOC Executive Board (30 and 31 July) and the 129th IOC Session (2-4 August).
