With less than a year until the start of the 2016 Olympic Games, news source New India Express is reporting that Rio organizers have had to raise the official budget by 70 million reais (20 million USD). The entire Games’ budget now sits at an astounding 38.67 billion reais (11 billion USD).
This is despite Rio’s mayor, Eduardo Paes, stating as recently as August 5th that Rio was “trying to create a cultural legacy where things can be done on time. We are very proud that with one year to go we are on time. Brazil is not a country where everything is delayed and over cost. It is on time and delivered more cheaply than in the bid.”
According to a report released by Brazil’s Olympic Public Authority (APO), the increase in costs is primarily due to additional expenditures associated with Olympic venues, of which organizers say are well on their way to completed. The main Olympic Park is reportedly 82% complete, the Olympic stadium at 79%, the golf course at 98%, the athletes’ village at 89% and the aquatic stadium at 81%.
Nevertheless, Paes maintains a positive outlook on the city’s progress and initiatives saying, “I’m doing what mayors before me promised, but didn’t deliver. Don’t come here wanting Swiss, Swedish or Danish levels of development, we are not there- but we have advanced a lot in recent years.”
Why not move the open water, rowing and related events to another city? Brazil has plenty of beautiful beaches even within the State of Rio de Janeiro which are not polluted.
Too bad the cost overruns aren’t because the organizers aren’t spending the extra money on cleaning up the raw sewage in the open water and rowing venues. Because that would make sense.