Rio 2016: Beyond Zika, crime and polluted water

Defying The Odds, Rio 2016 Olympics Is Breaking New Frontiers

They say the beauty of Brazil lies in its location. It is a country easily accessible from all parts of the world and serves in most cases as the first point of entry into the Latin American continent.

Brazil gives an impression of a country racing against time. It is a country of massive construction, which is in a hurry to be like the best cities in modern Europe and North America.

A country of beautiful beaches, good music and women willing and eager to embrace all the peoples of the world, there is no better place to be in South America right now than this country hosting this year’s Olympic Games.

Coming to the iconic city of Rio, a town that embodies all that is beautiful and ambitious in the nation of samba, is like visiting a people in a hurry to demonstrate that South America can be as good as, if not better than, the best countries in the developed world.

Even with the negative publicity this country of positive people suffered from Western media on the eve of the Olympics, one is forced to give kudos to a nation that has braved all odds to give the world something to cheer in this era of global economic depression.

Just as the Olympics offer a lot of attractions to sports lovers, it also gives the tourist many things to behold within the city hosting the games.

Before the beginning of the Olympics, all the Western media focused on was the crime, mosquitoes and their by-product, called Zika virus, as well as the failure to complete the facilities in time for the events.

This sort of picture conspired to force many of the world’s best athletes to shun the games, feigning injury, congested programmes and in many cases, concern for their health.

It did not matter that some of the best minds in the world had declared the country safe for every careful sportsman ready to pitch his wits against his contemporaries from other parts of the world.

Simply put, having arrived in Rio de Janeiro, one is tempted to believe the peoples’ view that the West worked hard to diminish the Games because they did not want any rival to the claim that London 2012 is the best ever Olympics in the modern era.

Rio, which boasts of the famous Selaron Steps, Ipanema Beach, Beach at Arpoador, Sugarloaf Mountain and the iconic statue of Christ the Redeemer, has in the first few days of the Games staked its claim as a very successful host city, which has justified the International Olympics Committee’s (IOC) decision to stage the event for the very first time in South America.

How many people have suffered from the infamous crime, mosquitoes and dirty water that are supposed to be the identity of this beautiful city so far?

When The Guardian entered into an argument with a German reporter, whose itinerary seems to centre on discovering the bad sites of Rio, one got the impression that perhaps there is more to the demonisation of the country than the claim that Brazil was not yet ready to host an event as huge as the modern Olympics.

At the end of the day, the reason for the scarcity of mosquitoes in Rio now narrowed down to the excuse that this is clearly not mosquito season.

He cautioned one that it is better to be safe from Zika, dengue fever and all else than to be sorry at the end of the games due to ‘reckless solidarity’ with a country claiming to be one of the nations of the developed world.

In spite of the naysayers, one of the beauties of the Olympics is how it brings people together from around the world.

There are volunteers from such far-flung countries as Australia, Malaysia and Thailand.

The Guardian met a Nigerian Information Technology (IT) volunteer, who was attracted to the Games from England, where he works as an electronics engineer.

Dele Shobowale, who said he fixed his vacation to coincide with the Games, is one of the volunteers saddled with the responsibility of ensuring that everything worked well at the Athletes Village.

“I have been in town for over three weeks and I still haven’t seen a mosquito.

“One of the beauties of my job is that I get to see physically some of the athletes I hitherto only saw on television or read about in sports magazines.

“Although I have not had much time to explore the entire city, I can say for sure that Rio de Janeiro is one of the most beautiful cities in the world, and I have seen some in my time,” said the 44-year-old volunteer.

Rio is not entirely without sights that can frighten any visitor who has not been to countries notorious for their military presence.

From the airport to the inner city, there are soldiers and security officers, machine guns at the ready, watching as the people move around the city. They are needed at least to assure skeptics that they are safe in the country.

The Guardian met Alberto Santos, a Brazilian, at the iconic Maracana Stadium, who acknowledged that there are criminals in Rio, just as in other major cities of the world.

He added, however, that as was the case during the World Cup, no sane criminal would attempt anything foolish now that the country has unleashed the best of its law enforcement officers on the city.

“As our mayor reminded the Cable Network News (CNN) journalists, there are mass shootings in almost every major city in the United States (US), criminals have been having a field day in Germany and France lately and the world has not stopped moving on.

“You cannot see anything in Rio that has not happened elsewhere in the world, but we are all united to ensure that our visitors enjoy their stay here and leave with positive images of our country,” he said.

This Olympics would go down in history as the first to give every human being on earth, no matter his/her circumstances, the opportunity to compete and win honours for him/herself.

The Refugee Athletes
Normally, asylum seekers and refugees usually read about the Games or watch the events (where they can) on television. But in Rio, for the first time in Olympics history, there is a group of refugees, with incredible stories to tell, participating as medal-seeking athletes.

The most popular of the unusual athletes is perhaps Yusra Mardini, originally from Syria, who is competing under the Refugee Team banner.

Mardini nearly drowned while escaping the conflict in Syria, as the boat she was on began to fill up with water. Just four people on the boat, including herself, were able to swim and they pushed the boat for three hours until reaching land.

She swam in the women’s 100m butterfly and although she did not advance, she won her heat.

Rami Anis is also from Syria and also fled the conflict aboard a dinghy, and while he did not advance from his heat, he set a personal best in the 100m freestyle. What better place to break your own record than at the Olympics?

Yiech Pur Biel is a runner from South Sudan who fled the civil war in his country and settled in a refugee camp.

He only started running a year ago and while there are “no facilities in the camp, not even shoes,” he will take part in the 800m.

He said he wants to “show the world that being a refugee, you can do something.”

Another 800m athlete, James Nyang Chiengjiek, is also from South Sudan and also settled in a camp in Kenya. Like Biel, he spoke of not having the right gear to compete and in addition to getting good results at the Olympics, his dream is also “to help people. Because I have been supported by someone, I also want to support someone.”

Rose Nathike Lokonyen will run the 800m, having fled South Sudan and settled in Kenya.

Like her other teammates, gear has not exactly been at the top of her priorities list, as she only started training in shoes a year ago.

Also from South Sudan is 21-year-old Anjelina Nadai Lohalith, who will take part in the 1,500m heats over the weekend.

She started running while still at primary school.

South Sudan will also have a male athlete in the 1,500m, Paulo Amotun Lokoro.

The 24-year-old began running after arriving at a refugee camp in Kenya and said during his journey to the camp: “We ran to the bush and stayed in the bush. There was no food; we just ate fruit.”

Yolande Bukasa Mabika is a refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), who took up judo after being put in a home for displaced children in the capital, Kinshasa. But her coaches abused her and often locked her up after losing games.

While competing in Rio in 2013, she applied for asylum, just like Popole Misenga.

Misenga is also from the DRC and lost his mother in the conflict. He also ended up at a home for displaced children and eventually applied for refugee status in Brazil.

Yonas Kinde, a 36-year-old from Ethiopia, is the oldest member of the team.

He fled Ethiopia because of “political problems” and now lives under special protection in Luxembourg.

He is a marathon runner who works as a taxi driver.

Team Nigeria Still Hoping For Medals
The Team Nigeria is not without its inspiring stories, despite the poor attitude of those saddled with the responsibility of managing the team.

There is the men’s basketball team, which has some players that ordinarily would have found better things to do with their time rather than go through the landmines set by their officials.

The team, made up of players plying their trade in the NBA in the US and the major leagues of Europe, paid their way through the qualifying series and training sessions ahead of the Games.

Although they have lost their first three matches to such world powers as Argentina, Spain and Lithuania, the D’Tigers have inspired so many basketballers of Nigerian heritage in the Diaspora to want to come back to play for the country.

Also out of the ordinary is the experience of the men’s football team, tagged Dream Team IV, who have defied all odds to get to the quarterfinals of the Games.

The team was abandoned in Atlanta, US, by the Ministry of Sports, whose head, Solomon Dalung, denounced them for going to a training camp to prepare for the Games.

They could not get to Brazil until four hours before their opening match, because the government failed to settle their hotel bills and did not provide transportation for them to get to Manaus, venue of their first two matches.

Yet, they gave the Games the very best match of the competition so far in their 5-4 defeat of Japan.

The team went on to beat Sweden 1-0 and although they lost 0-2 to Colombia, they still topped their group and will meet Denmark in the quarterfinals this weekend.

Team Nigeria’s participation in these Games has been hampered by the tussle for power between the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC) and the Ministry of Sports.

In other climes, the NOC is the custodian of each country’s to the Olympic Games and works in tandem with the IOC and the host country to ensure that their contingents function at their best during the Games.

But Nigeria’s case has been different.
President Muhammadu Buhari in a ceremony on the eve of the Games at the State House, Abuja, handed over Team Nigeria to the NOC, with the admonition that they should ensure the country’s athletes not only did well in their events, but also represented the country well outside the tracks.

However, since arriving for the games, the NOC and the Ministry have been drawn in a battle over who should control the team.

The ministry seems to have the upper hand, because it controls the resources released by the Federal Government for the Games.

Although today is day nine of the Olympics and many other countries have won medals, it is still early days for Team Nigeria.

The country is out of contention in table tennis, basketball and swimming, but the officials believe they would hit gold when wrestling, athletics and weightlifting begin.

Former national weightlifting champion, Lawrence Iquaibom, believes that Nigeria has a medal prospect in Maryam Usman, who is a veteran of the London 2012 Games.

The weightlifting events start on August 14.
Iquaibom is here as one of the referees, but he is also helping the national team coaches to get the squad ready for the challenges.