Olympic Opening Ceremony Puts Brazil Cash Crunch on Display
- Creative director tapped ‘MacGyver-ism’ to make ends meet
- Government freed up resources in last-minute funding
Athletes practice on Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas, the site of the Olympic rowing venue for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games on on August 5, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Photographer: Matthias Hangst/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
Ready or not, here comes Rio de Janeiro. The Olympic games opened Friday with last-minute funding and an interim head of state, underscoring the economic and political turmoil gripping host country Brazil.
Ceremony organizers had to make do with a budget that’s a fraction of the amount spent by 2012 Olympics host London. It wasn’t enough; they needed eleventh-hour government funds to make ends meet, breaking Rio 2016’s long-held promise for the event to be privately funded.