Justice

Rio's 2016 Olympics Have Already Done One Thing Better Than London 2012

These mascots are actually kind of cute.

The mascots of the Rio 2016 Olympics, left, and Paralympic Games make their first official appearance at a public school in the Santa Teresa neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Monday, Nov. 24, 2014.AP/Felipe Dana

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By Mark Byrnes

November 24, 2014 at 9:36 PM UTC

The non-human faces of Rio's 2016 Summer Olympics and Paralympics will be a cat that's not a cat and tree that's not a tree.

Unveiled early Monday, the mascots were, according to the Games' website, born from the "explosion of happiness" that occurred in Rio on October 2, 2009, when the city's bid to host the Games was selected. Jacques Rogge's voice holds fertile powers.