I think we all remember the build up to hosting the 2010 Football World Cup, when everyone was falling over themselves proclaiming it was a disaster waiting to happen.

Well, other than bribing our way to hosting rights, things went off pretty hitch-free and the naysayers were left eating humble bobotie.

It’s a similar vibe building up to next month’s Rio Olympics, although there might be some legs to claims that the event will be an outright mess.

You may have heard some of these before, but we’ll run through seven major stumbling blocks with the help of PRI:

1. ‘Super bacteria’ — not good

Some of Rio’s waterways were already notorious for being rather sickening. It gets worse. Brazilian researchers have now discovered a “super bacteria” in water, including beaches near an Olympic sailing venue. The bacteria came by way of local hospital sewage. “It feels like there’s some alien enemy entering your face,” German Paralympic sailor [said].

2. Shooting the Olympic mascot

Nothing quite captures the mix of bad planning and bad luck facing Brazil in its Olympic year like the story of Juma the jaguar. The 17-year-old female big cat appeared in an Olympic torch ceremony last month. A few hours later, a soldier shot her dead after she escaped from her enclosure at a zoo that’s part of a military base in Manaus, in northern Brazil’s Amazon region. She had reportedly been tranquilized [sic], but was shot as she moved toward a team that was attempting to capture her.

3. The Olympic torch (almost) goes out

A 27-year-old man was briefly detained June 26 for attempting to extinguish the Olympic flame with a bucket of water as it passed through the farm town of Maracaju. The man, who has not been named, tried to put the flame out for a bet he made with friends on Facebook…

Yes, there is video:

4. ‘Welcome to hell’

A banner greeting passengers arriving at Rio’s Galeão International Airport last week read: “Welcome to hell. Police and firefighters don’t get paid, whoever comes to Rio de Janeiro will not be safe.” According to media reports, the banner was held by a group of protesting first responders. Maybe hell is a bit harsh, but Rio’s deep cutbacks have hurt across many sectors. The state is suffering a bad fiscal crisis that’s shut down schools and could be fuelling more violence in favelas.

5. Body parts wash up on Copacabana Beach

At least two mutilated human body parts, including a foot, washed up on Rio’s iconic Copacabana Beach Wednesday. It was just yards from where the Olympic beach volleyball events will take place. The body parts appeared to belong to a young adult or a woman..

6. Athletes mugged in broad daylight

Two members of the Australian Paralympic team were robbed in broad daylight last month in Rio. Liesl Tesch, a Paralympic sailor and basketball player, and a team physiotherapist were riding bikes back from a training event when two people jumped out in front of them…

The incident followed other recent muggings of athletes in Brazil, including Spanish sailing team members who were robbed at gunpoint in May.

Australian officials called on Rio to deploy its expanded security force early, in order to keep athletes and visitors safe. Given the state’s dire financial straits, that’s unlikely to happen.

7. Big official says the games could be a ‘big failure’

Whereas Rio de Janeiro’s mayor has been trying hard to convince the public that the Olympics will be a sparkling success, the state’s governor struck a different tone…“We can hold a great Olympics, but if some steps are not taken, it could be a big failure,” Gov. Francisco Dornelles said. Dornelles was referring to the $849 million bailout to Rio. He said the state can’t afford to pay public safety employees and those funds are essential to keep the city, and visitors, safe in the coming weeks.

Taken in isolation these fears can perhaps be somewhat dismissed, but when you consider all seven together you start to worry about how Rio is going to deliver the kind of event organisers, fans and competitors deserve.

Then again everyone loves watching a train wreck – just look at the viewership for our National Assembly and that point becomes pretty clear.

[source:pri]