Questions Raised Following Rio's Largest Challenge Before World Cup, Olympics

Road to Rio 2016

The recently-concluded World Youth Day represented Rio de Janeiro's biggest logistical test ahead of the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Following several organizational errors, including a security shake-up at the Pope's arrival site and transportation issues which left thousands stranded, many question the city's capability to host its next major world event.

Rio's Mayor Eduardo Paes addressed WYD errors in a press conference on Monday while saying, "The celebration was not only the largest, but the most beautiful in history."

In a previous interview on WYD, Paes noted that the city "scored closer to zero than ten" on its organization. Rio 2016 organizers hope to learn from errors made during WYD.

Rio 2016 officials participated in a WYD observer program at Rio’sCenter for Command and Control on July 25. The program was organized bythe Olympic Public Authority (APO), and allowed organizers aninsight into operations for large-scale events such as WYD.

"The lessons learned will certainly be incorporated in our Games," a spokesman for Rio 2016 said in a statement to Around The Rings, "We already work in close partnership with the security and liaison officials within our team and we are highly integrated throughout the project."

The APO is a public consortium formed by the federal government, the State, and City of Rio. The creation of the APO was one of the guarantees offered by Brazil to the IOC during the application to host the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The aim, among others, is the coordination of government actions for the planning and delivery of works and services necessary to carry the Games. The consortium is integrating the efforts of the three governments to ensure the realization of the two events.

APO President Marcio Fortes said in a statement to Around The Rings: "We [had] teams of professionals in all areas of services: supplies, energy to security, communication, airports, [and] transport, among others.

"We tracked everything to see what needed to be fixed and we know that every event is different from one another. Major events such as the Carnival and major football championships each have their specificities."

WYD challenged the City of Rio. "There were errors recognized by the Mayor of Rio de Janeiro," Fortes said.

Said errors included a bomb threat near the Pope's arrival site and failures in the "subway system that affected the pilgrims."

"But it is a singular event of 3.5 million people concentrated around a single personality," Fortes said about WYD.

He added: "This is unlike the Olympics where there are several venues and an audience, [which] in London was 900,000 people."

"There are public transport routes running, such as the BRT Transcarioca planned for the World Cup which will connect the International Airport to Barra da Tijuca, the Olympic Park."

Rio officials will also expand the subway, and continue to improve in areas such as "security, airports, hospitality, energy, and telecommunications."

WYD 2013 Ends

Three million mass-goers gathered at Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana beach on July 28 tohear Pope Francis’ closing address for WYD.

Aside from calling Brazilian youngsters to action, the Pope announced the next host diocese for WYD 2016: Krakow, Poland.

A week prior to WYD in Rio, pilgrims participated in traditional MissionWeek activities. Approximately 300,000 young people from more than 135countries took part in Mission Week activities throughout Madrid inpreparation for WYD 2011.

The famous Popemobile arrived in Rio on July 15. Pope Francis faced atumultuous start to his first international trip. The Pontiff’s Braziltour began with a bomb scare near his arrival site, riots, and masses ofadmiring fans.

The Pope addressed the masses during a prayer service on July 25, andblessed the Olympic and Paralympic flags at Rio’s City Palace.

He then visited Varginha, one of Rio’s most violent slums, todemonstrate his focus on reaching out to the poor – which kept hissecurity team on its toes.

The Pontiff kissed babies, spoke with former drug addicts, visitedhospitals and religious sites throughout Rio, and even donned atraditional Brazilian headdress. Overall, the Pope called for manyreforms to take place in the Catholic Church.

He also addressed protesters throughout Brazil and implored them to keepdemonstrations peaceful. This marked the Pope's first reference to theBrazilian protests which broke out in June.

Brazil will stage the 2014 FIFA World Cup from June 12 to July 13.

Written byNicole Bennett.

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