Rio 2016

Israeli company International Security & Defence Systems (ISDS) has said it has been awarded the contract to plan and coordinate the security concept for Rio de Janeiro’s 2016 Olympic Games in a deal worth $2.2bn (€1.7bn).

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has praised the progress made in Rio de Janeiro’s preparations for the 2016 Olympics over the past six months, but has maintained that the schedule for the next edition of the summer Games “remains tight.”

Gilbert Felli, the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) executive director of the Olympic Games, is confident that a lawsuit against Rio de Janeiro and the developer of a new golf course in the city will not impact the sport’s test event ahead of the 2016 Olympic Games.

Rio 2016 has announced details of its ticket pricing strategy for the Olympic Games, and insisted that more than half of the 7.5 million tickets available will be priced at R70 (€24/$31) or less in a bid to ensure the event is “open to everyone.”

German ticketing company Eventim has been appointed as the exclusive ticketing services provider for the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Rio 2016 on Monday celebrated the two-year countdown to the opening of its Olympic Games, with organisers vowing that the delays and cost overruns which blighted the lead-in to the country’s staging of the 2014 Fifa World Cup will not be repeated.

A Rio 2016 official has said the local organising committee has made “incredible progress” following International Olympic Committee (IOC) criticism regarding preparations for the Games in Brazil.

International sailing squads will test the water quality at the controversial sailing venue for the Rio 2016 Olympics at the Games’ first official test event this week.

Rio de Janeiro’s Mayor, Eduardo Paes, has pledged to offer free tickets to the 2016 Olympic Games in order to attract more diverse crowds than those that attended matches at the 2014 Fifa World Cup in Brazil.

Gilbert Felli, executive director of the Olympic Games for the International Olympic Committee (IOC), has stated that the smooth running of football’s Fifa World Cup in Brazil has improved confidence over the country’s hosting of the 2016 summer Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Rio de Janeiro’s Mayor, Eduardo Paes, has conceded that the city will not keep its promise of cleaning the polluted Guanabara Bay in time for its staging of the 2016 Olympic Games.

Rio 2016 has taken a significant step in addressing one of the main problem areas in its preparations for the Olympic Games by awarding a tender for its Deodoro zone to a consortium comprising Brazilian construction companies OAS and Queiroz Galvão.

The International Sailing Federation (ISAF) has said it may conduct independent water-quality tests in Rio de Janeiro’s Guanabara Bay as concerns mount over pollution levels at the sailing venue for the 2016 Olympic Games.

Brazilian state environmental officials have acknowledged that previously set water pollution targets will not be met in time for Rio de Janeiro’s hosting of the 2016 summer Olympic Games.

Organisers of the Rio 2016 Olympics have moved to quell criticism of their preparations for the Games by announcing 38 per cent of competition venues are ready for the event.

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has welcomed the appointment by Rio 2016 of IPC vice-president Andrew Parsons as chair of the Games’ Paralympic Integration Committee and insisted that it is ‘encouraged’ by developments in preparing for the event.