Australia’s Olympic delegation presented Rio de Janeiro’s mayor, Eduardo Paes, with a toy boxing kangaroo late Wednesday as they laid to rest a spat over conditions in the Olympic Village that has marred the build-up to next month’s Games.
Paes angered many in Brazil and abroad when he appeared to downplay Australia’s complaints over conditions in the Olympic Village on Sunday by saying he might install a kangaroo on the premises to make them feel more at home.
The gift of the small, stuffed toy by Australian delegation leader Kitty Chiller showed there were no hard feelings about what she dubbed “banter” with the outspoken mayor.
Paes presented the Australian team with the key to the city of Rio.
Chiller’s warning on Sunday that housing in the Olympic Village was “not safe or ready” due to leaky plumbing, blocked toilets and exposed wires ignited concern over Rio’s readiness to host the first Olympics in South America.
She had moved the Australian team out of the Village until the problems were solved.
Argentina also boycotted the site while Italy and New Zealand said they had been forced to call in workers to fix problems after organisers admitted the blocks had been handed over without proper testing of water and power systems.
At a ceremony in the Village, a smiling Paes apologised and thanked the Australian team for their understanding – and said they would be his second choice team for the Games, after Brazil.
“I think we’ve managed to continue laughing throughout... to maintain our sense of humour,” Chiller told a news conference after the ceremony, noting that some 50 Australian athletes had already moved back into the official accommodation.
“These Olympic Games are a marathon not a sprint and I’m sure that there are going to be other hurdles and obstacles that crop up in other areas and it’s just a matter of dealing with them as best as we can in good humour.”
Paes has deployed more than 600 workmen to work around the clock on the Olympic Village and expects to have all 31 tower blocks ready for use by the end of the week.
Labour inspectors in Brazil warned this week they could fine the Games organisers for not providing the workers with the proper legal contracts.
With eight days until the opening ceremony, only a fraction of the 18,000 team members expected for the Games have arrived, with the bulk of them due next week.
Thousands of soldiers and police are already patrolling the streets of the crime-ridden city, with a naval ship sitting off the sandy crescent of Copacabana Bay, where the beach volleyball competition will be held in a massive temporary arena.
The head of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, who arrived in Rio on Wednesday, played down concerns over the city’s readiness.
“The last couple of days before the Olympic Games there is always one issue or other to be solved. The Brazilians will solve it,” Bach said.
“You can already feel the Olympic energy here. We always had confidence in Brazil, in the Brazilians, that it will be a fantastic Olympic Games.”