| | |  Editorials | Issues | October 2009 
Brazil and South America Celebrate Their Victory
 Los Tiempos
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October 06, 2009
| | Aerial view of Olympic Park in Rio. Rio will host the 2016 Summer Olympics. (olympic.org) | |
"The hour has arrived for Brazil and for all of South America," said Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, making his case for Rio de Janeiro to host the 2016 Olympic Games. Shortly after his presentation to the International Olympic Committee, his request was granted. The selection of Rio de Janeiro prompted an outbreak of jubilation among the Brazilian delegation in Copenhagen, which quickly echoed throughout every corner of Brazil and the rest of South America.
With this triumph, the world gives a great boost to Brazil, confirming that the large South American country is on its way to becoming a great world power that could shine a guiding light for rest of South America to emerge, finally, from its status as an underdeveloped continent.
The Brazilian president's presence at the conference in Copenhagen was pivotal in influencing the votes of the members of the IOC, where he competed side by side with none other than Barack Obama, King Juan Carlos and President Felipe Rodríguez Zapatero of Spain and Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, who made their pitches for Chicago, Madrid and Tokyo, respectively
As a result of its victory, Brazil has assumed an enormous political responsibility: It will now stand as a representative of all of South America, a continent that has never held an Olympiad.
As an emerging power, Brazil appears to be more than capable of undertaking an enterprise of this magnitude. As a confident Lula assured the members of the IOC, "Rio is ready. Give us this chance and you will not regret it."
Let us hope that the other countries of South America are also ready to rise to the occasion, so that when the world turns its eyes on us in 2016, they will see a thriving and dynamic continent. With the historic vote of confidence it has just received from the IOC, Brazil has shown us that this is indeed possible.
Translation: Truthout Spanish language editor Ryan Croken. Ryan Croken is a freelance writer and editor based in Chicago. His essays and book reviews have appeared in The Philadelphia Inquirer, Z Magazine, and Religion Dispatches, among others. He can be reached at ryan.croken(at)gmail.com. |
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