Next Gen Journal

City of Rio de Janeiro with underlying Brazilian Flag

By Brandon Lopez

It’s time for the “River” to shine. Recently the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro was chosen by the International Olympic Committee to host the 2016 Summer Olympics after defeating other cities such as Chicago, Madrid, and Tokyo.

As the first South American city in history to host the Summer Olympics, Rio de Janeiro has a truly monumental task ahead of it. Not only do the Brazilians have to prepare an entire city for a truly international event come 2016, but they also have to prepare for hosting the FIFA World Cup only two years before in 2014. If all goes well, the International Olympic Committee could then start looking at cities from other developing nations more seriously in their bids to host the games.

However the opposite is also true as on October 17, 2009, a police helicopter in Rio de Janeiro was shot down by local gangs, killing 2 policemen on board and seriously wounding 3 others. This has lead many to curb their enthusiasm for Rio hosting the games, citing gang violence as a huge factor. While the Brazilian government has stated that it will quell the majority of violence by 2014, many simply look at the still-burning wreckage of city buses in the slums to cast doubt on that claim. On the other hand, some call upon the fact that London was not doubted as an Olympic host even though it was attacked the very next day after being chosen for the 2012 games. So here are my questions for you:

Was the International Olympic Committee right in choosing Rio de Janeiro over much safer and more established candidates? Does this recent violence compromise Rio’s ability to host the games?