Rio Roundup: Viruses Thrive in Olympic Venues

(ATR) New tests show dangerous levels of viruses in Olympic sailing courses outside of Guanabara Bay.

GarbageAccording to the new tests commissioned by the Associated Press, virus levels are just as high on the outskirts of the bay as they are near where raw sewage flows untreated into the waters. The new tests follow similar testing in July, prior to the first Olympic test events in the water venues.

Rio 2016 organizers, international federations and the IOC have ruled out testing for viruses, citing a lack of global standards for doing so.

At one timeRio 2016 considered testing for viruses, then reversed course.

In April, Rio de Janeiro ecologist Mario Moscatelli called Guanabara Bay "not safe" for competition, and warned athletes to not compete if they did not have vaccinations for Hepatitis A.

"Guanabara Bay does not offer the boating safety conditions, nor water quality to [host] the events of the Olympics," Moscatelli said.

After the sailing test event, organizers remained confident in the venue’s ability to host an Olympic regatta, amid all the concerns. No plans have been considered to move sailing outside of Rio, and preparations for the regatta have continued.

Athletes in sailing and rowing test events have reported illnesses after contact with the water. But Rio 2016 and the international federations say no causal relationship has been proved.

Rio Creates Olympic Public Transit Card

Olympic visitors will be able to buy an unlimited transportation pass for public transportation in Rio de Janeiro.

MetrôRio will offer visitors a chance to buy a Cartão Olímpico to secure unlimited travel during the pay-period. Consumers will be able to choose the dates they will pay for unlimited transportation on the card, and all three metro lines 1, 2, and 4 will be eligible for use along with city busses.

Rio is building metro line 4 for the O lympics, and it is expected to begin operation in a limited capacity in June.

MetrôRio Chief Operating Officer Daniel Habib told the Rio Times that during the period of Aug. 5 to Sept. 18, public transportation will run 24 hours on days with Olympic events that are scheduled past midnight. The city’s metro linesnormallyshut down at 12:30 am.

"On these dates, the subway interval between midnight and 5AM will be twenty minutes," Habib added.

The Olympic Card will contain restrictions for the number of people using one card, as well as cost, but those details remain to be decided by authorities.

Rio Adds Paralympic Sponsor

Coca-Cola is the tenth partner of the 2016 Paralympic Games.

The soft-drink company will be able to use the Paralympic logo in Brazil in company advertising, in addition to branding and marketing rights. Coca-Cola joins Bradesco Seguros, Claro, Embratel, Correios, GE, Nissan, Omega and P&B as sponsors for the Paralympics.

Homepage Photo: Getty Images

Written by Aaron Bauer in Rio de Janeiro

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