In what is giving us shades of PTSD from the ill-prepared Winter Olympics in Sochi, the International Olympic Committee said Tuesday that the construction work for the 2016 Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro is just short of a full-on disaster.
John Coates, the IOC's vice president, said Rio's grounds are "the worst I have experienced" and that the prep is behind "in many, many ways" — even more so than Athens was in 2004. To help soothe delayed construction problems in the troubled country, the IOC has begun embedding experts in the host city to help completion.
Despite the public lashing, the IOC isn't planning to relocate the upcoming games elsewhere (that would likely be a logistical nightmare).
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"The IOC has adopted a more hands-on role," said Coates at an Olympics forum in Sydney. "It is unprecedented for the IOC, but there is no plan B. We are going to Rio."
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