Rio Progress "Really Impressive" Says IOC Co Comm Chair

(ATR) IOC Coordination Commission chair Nawal El Moutawakel suggests Olympic preparations are back on schedule in Rio de Janeiro.

She and her IOC colleagues are in the 2016 host city this week for their second official inspection of Games works and first since May of 2010.

That visit ended with the Moroccan IOC member telling Rio organizers they had no time to waste despite more than six years remaining until the Games.

"I am happy to say that both Rio 2016 and its partners have taken these words seriously and the progress made since then is really impressive," she told organizers Tuesday at the opening of the three-day affair.

El Moutawakel also lauded the logo launch staged at Copacabana Beach on New Year’s Eve. Both she and fellow Co Comm member Gilbert Felli joined IOC president Jacques Rogge for the fireworks-laden spectacle.

"Besides being a fantastic event, it has also underlined Rio’s reputation as a vibrant and entertaining tourism destination," she said Tuesday.

While in town for New Year’s, the IOC cohort also received assurances of full support from newly elected Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff at her New Year’s Day inauguration ceremony, an occasion referenced Tuesday by Rio 2016 president Carlos Nuzman.

"You have entrusted us the mission of staging memorable Games, and I can assure you that we will honor your trust, and will offer a historicalcontribution to the Olympic Movement", he told IOC members during opening remarks.

"You will see that we will leave a rich legacy to our country, to our city and to our people, fulfilling the commitments undertaken during the candidature stage. And, you will be able to evidence that, above all, there is true passion in everything we do."

Like the Co Comm’s last visit, the infrastructural overhaul the host city must undergo to stage the Olympics in justover five years’ time is dominating this week’s agenda, including transportation improvements and additional accommodation.

A slate of meetings filled the first day with Henrique Meirelles in a starring role for the first time. The former Brazilian central bank president was formally appointed by Rousseff in March to head APO, the organization overseeing the federal government’s role in Games preparations.

After spending much of Tuesday sitting indoors, the 18 IOC members donned hard hats for Wednesday’s tour of Olympic works.

IOC members saw revitalization efforts underway at Rio’s old port zone for the first time as well as progress on the renovation of Maracana stadium, site for opening and closing ceremonies as well as the Olympic football final.

Still more meetings will follow on Thursday, and a joint IOC-Rio 2016 press conference will cap off the visit.

Written by Matthew Grayson.