Brazil’s Sports Minister insists that Rio de Janeiro is prepared to host the Olympic Games in two months, despite a litany of heavily publicized potential setbacks.
Leonardo Picciani, who was appointed to the role less than three months ago, told the BBC that those attending the Games would “have a great experience.”
It has been an arduous few months for the South American country, where President Dilma Rousseff faces an impeachment trial in a sweeping national corruption scandal, and an outbreak of the Zika virus has prompted more than 200 scientists to ask officials to delay the Olympics.
Read More: Here Are the 4 Challenges Rio de Janeiro Must Meet to Host a Successful 2016 Olympics
Meanwhile, there remains work to be done in preparation for the Games themselves. The BBC reports that there are concerns over unfinished construction, and in late April, two people died after the collapse of a bike path built in a wave of pre-Olympic municipal renovations.
Picciani, however, said “all precautions” had been taken to prevent the spread of Zika and that the Olympics team was running “seamlessly.”
“I would say to any athlete, to any visitor planning on coming to Rio, you do not have to worry, Rio and Brazil have prepared for this moment.”
[BBC]
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