QOC Aids Brazilian Athletics - Rio Roundup

(ATR) The Qatar Olympic Committee will use public donations from its Rio 2016 hospitality center as part of a commitment to grow athletics in Brazil.

"The Olympic committee is determined to contribute to the legacy the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games will provide to Brazil," Sheikh Asma Al Thani, marketing director for the QOC, said to reporters about the initiative. "We believe in the power of sport to change lives and we want to make sure we grasp this opportunity for young people in Rio de Janeiro."

The donations are only one part of a partnership between the QOC and local non-governmental organization Futuro Olimpico called the "Shine Project." The NGO, which is run by four-time Olympian Arnaldo de Oliveira da Silva, aims to develop the next generation of Brazilian Olympians in athletics.

All visitors to Bayt Qatar will be asked to give a donation before entering. That donation will help provide uniforms and operating costs for Futuro Olimpico, da Silva said to Around the Rings.

In addition, the QOC will send 10 top athletes, some from Futuro Olimpico, to Doha, Qatar to take part in a high-performance training camp at the country’s Aspire Academy. After the training camp, the returning athletes will share the knowledge they learned with other Futuro Olimpico athletes helping grow more high-performance athletes in Brazil.

"The donations of equipment will help over 200 children, and it is not an easy moment in Brazil to have those costs," da Silva said to ATR. "Going to Doha will be an interesting exchange for the athletes as they learn how top athletes work and get to know a different culture."

Airport Expansion Inaugurated

Rio de Janeiro’s international airport has 26 new boarding gates to receive Olympic travelers.

Rio Mayor Eduardo Paes inaugurated the airport expansion at Tom Jobim International Airport on May 19. The expansion was done to accommodate the influx of passengers that Rio de Janeiro will be receiving for the Olympic Games.

Currently, Tom Jobim can receive 40,000 passengers a day, but the expansion will help accommodate the 90,000 the city will have on the day after the Olympics. The renovations cost $560 million and the first flights will arrive in the new expansion on May 23.

"I always like to remember the relationship of the Olympic Games and the city with the delivery at the airport here," Paes said to local media during the inauguration. "A great reason to bring the Olympics to the city is the benefit you can give the people after."

Sports Minster Guarantees Olympic Infrastructure

Leonardo Picciani says that all "obligatory infrastructure" for the Olympic Games will be completed.

Picciani is the third Sports Minister Brazil has had in 2016. He was appointed by acting President Michel Temer for his new cabinet after Dilma Rousseff was suspended from office as part of the ongoing impeachment process.

The Rio metro expansion and velodrome are the two question marks that remain in infrastructure projects for the Olympics with less than 80 days until the Opening Ceremony. Picciani told Reuters in an interview there will be no hiccups with either project and both will be used during the Games.

"The president's keyword is 'confidence' and that will be demonstrated to the world by having the Games succeed," Picciani said in an interview. "I am very sure that Brazil has taken all the measures needed to effectively guarantee that the Games will be safe."

As Picciani was appointed during the last stretch of preparations, he was forced to jump right into the fray just two days on the job. This week, he will be briefed on the current state of Guanabara Bay, the site of Olympic sailing competitions.

Picciani will also continue to probe all Olympic contracts to see if any involved kickbacks or graft connected to the current Petrobras scandal, according to Reuters. No contracts have been found to be associated with the scandal, while IOC and city officials maintain all contacts were negotiated fairly.

Written by Aaron Bauer in Rio de Janeiro

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