SuperSport presenter Crystal Arnold touched down in Rio last week for the 2016 Summer Olympics. Here she tells Grazia about her first impressions of Brazil:
My base during this Olympic Games is in the heart of the Copacabana, and that means that the four kilometre stretch of pristine Rio waterfront is a short walk away. And, if you’re up to living the Carioca lifestyle, a jog with the locals on any given morning is a great start to the day.
From one end of the Copacabana to the other, all you see is the Olympics – from sand sculptures on the beach to the Rio Olympic megastore and the massive Olympic rings just outside the store (a perfect spot for a selfie. And, yes I did). Vendors are selling flags and replica Olympic torch souvenirs, all while stepping to a samba beat because there is a rhythm and music pulsating all the way down the Copacabana. It’s infectious and exhilarating.
In truth, the media hotel is just a pit stop to sleep at, in between sampling the local flavour of Rio and the non-stop nature of the Olympic Games’ events. The biggest benefit of a media hotel is that you’re close to the major transport hubs. All media have the freedom to access public transport. But the most important bus is the blue bus with Olympic accreditation – it travels in that special Olympic Lane, which bypasses Rio traffic that more than rivals Joburg’s traffic jams.
My favourite aspect of the Olympic Games is not only seeing the determination and focus of the world’s top athletes first hand, but, for sports media, this is also a chance for a reunion of sorts. I’ve made lifelong friends in the battle zone – we call the mixed zone – it’s an area with a view of the Olympians in action and as soon as they complete their event, they have to pass through the hundreds of media houses’ representatives all jostling for that clincher interview with the Olympic champion.
It’s a cutthroat, but there’s always respect and that means while I’ll fight for my interview, we can still hang out when the event is done. I have formed great friendships with volunteers and sport broadcasters from all over the world: USA, France, UK and Australia to Sky New Zealand’s Scotty Stevenson – who I get to see more often than most. I have great memories of partying with crews in Beijing’s karaoke bars on the last night of the Olympics in 2008 and sharing an amazing dinner at Jamie Oliver’s Barbacoa before the closing ceremony in London.
It’s also a reunion for the athletes. It’s great to get to see friends/rivals in a setting so unique – The Athlete’s Village. This year the Rio Olympic Games village can house 17,950 athletes and technical staff. There are 31 buildings and 3604 flats. What I can say is that the SA team have not had the negative experience of other nations and, judging from their reaction, they are feeling right at home in Rio!
The mood of an athlete’s village is unlike any other. It’s so surreal to have more than 10 000 super-humans in one location. Imagine watching Cameron Van der Burgh bumping into the All Blacks’ Sonny Bill Williams and stealing a selfie. Where else could that happen?
Through the years there have also been some infamous parties as athletes celebrate after their events and celebrate even harder after gold medal success. But, what happens in the village stays in the village…
When an event shows heart it crosses the boundary of being just entertainment and Team Refugee’s inclusion is not just historic it’s the essence of the Olympic Games. Just thinking about the extraordinary adversity they’ve had to overcome makes me emotional. I hope that their participation, which in itself is an achievement to be proud of, turns the spotlight on the very real fact that there are still 65 million refugees in the world.
//Images: Supplied