An estimated 2.5 billion people worldwide watched the 2016 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony which took place in Rio de Janeiro’s Maracanã Stadium, only to then watch the more than facility fall into dilapidation and disrepair post-Olympics. We also reported earlier this year how the Olympic Aquatic Stadium, home to the competitive pool events, now rests empty, decaying and in a state of utter disrepair, despite Rio organizers’ original plans for the pool to be dismantled and repurposed.
Going on a year now removed from the Olympic Games, another potential legacy has been lost, as the ‘Seeds of Hope’ initiative has fallen by the wayside. In Rio organizers’ original plans, thousands of seedlings were to be planted post-Games to help offset the environmental impact of hosting the Olympics. A ceremonial year-after event was pitched to happen in the Summer or Fall of 2017 to commemorate the planting, yet nothing has been planned to date. (ESPN)
Per Brazil’s Federal Court of Audit, TCU, the nation’s government and spending watchdog, the seedlings remain in planting pots on a farm more than 100km from Rio, with their caretaker watching over them for free. Per TCU, Rio’s mayor blames the Olympic organizers, while the organizers blame the government, which renders the planting situation unresolved. Additionally, even the plants and trees that were part of Olympic Park are dying from lack of maintenance and irrigation. (ESPN)
“The planting of the 12,000 seedlings in the [Olympic] park is only a memory of a beautiful image in the Opening Ceremony,” the recently-released TCU report said. “The Rio 2016 committee made a promise to the world and has now been linked, morally, to this duty. To not plant the seeds would cause significant damage to the country’s image.”
2016 was a good year to lie about everything and get away with it
Give Hillary a break. It’s been about 10 months since she got was coming to her and the foundation was exposed for what it was.
The Russians hacking the election comes to mind outside of swimming, but what lies have been told about the sport of swimming?
Whatever Rio promised to do after 2016 isnt going to happen because they already spent all the money. It was probably a stupid line item in the original bid that they put in there to please environmentalist. Its like all the other promises they made that werent kept like cleaning up the sewer system. Personally I think Paris and LA should have colluded on their bids and told the IOC to go eff themselves. IE no perks for IOC members and they can ride the public bus and book their own hotels and eat at Mcdonalds for all I care
You know, I wouldn’t put this on Rio. The Olympics spread this rot wherever they go, Rio just happens to be the latest victim.
Not necessarily true. The legacy here in Vancouver is overall, pretty good. Got a couple great new facilities – the Oval & the pool on Little Mountain – and big improvements to the road to Whistler.
I wonder what the Londoners feel about the legacy there, 5 years on? (Serious question, btw.)
Not a Londoner, but stayed out by Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park when we were on vacation there earlier this year. It seems like the Olympics were a nice piece of the greater and ongoing redevelopment of the East End as a whole. The park itself is in excellent condition. Aquatic center was slammed with teams in the main competition pool and paddleboard yoga in the warm down pool when we looked in there. The main stadium was closed for tours because they were doing some cosmetic work between the end of the West Ham football season and the start of the World Track & Field Championships, and the international press center seems to be some sort of business incubator and… Read more »
I lived in Munich for a year. The Olympic park is in beautiful shape. People hang out on the hill near the lake, and the facilities are fine. You can go swimming in the same pool Mark Spitz won his seven golds — it’s open to the public daily. They have concerts and basketball games and other events in the indoor stadium next to the pool. The outdoor stadium also hosts events and was the home of FC Bayern until they opened a new stadium for them about 10 years ago.University students can use the training facilities, and the Olympic village is student housing.
It can be done right.
The networks should ALL donate a larger percentage of profits to host countries to help offset the cost. Wouldn’t want such an incredible tradition to be lost. Part of the spirit of the Olympic Games is the international competition. We need to find a way to fund events to make it feasible for even relatively poor countries to host the Games and maintain the venues for future use.
Poor countries need to stay out of the pool of potential hosts or we’ll have more Rio’s. Even if the networks donated part of the proceeds to offset the cost that doesn’t guarantee the host country will be able to support those venues long term.
Yet people took their side over Ryan Lochte. Free Lochte! I’m serious, so few people know the details of the incident because of how the media skewed everything and refused to report more after all the details came out.
Yea. Lochte’s life is really ruined…..
Yes, because it’s impossible that both Brazil did a poor job hosting the OG’s AND Lochte acted like a drunken fool and then lied.
A country who couldn’t take care of the Olympics and a person who did something minor is made out to be the bad guy. He might as well gotten pissed and drove home would’ve been less of a sentence for him!