BY JOE APU
News coming out of Brazil, courtesy of a former World Cup winner, Rivaldo, asking Nigerians and the rest of the world to stay off the Rio 2016 Olympic Games this summer has been dismissed by the Nigeria Olympic Committee, NOC.
Secretary General of the NOC, Tunde Popoola while reacting to the news told Daily Sunsport that there was no reason for Nigerians to be afraid as the NOC will not deliberately put the lives of her athletes at risk.
“The warning is a welcome one but one can’t tell from what angle it is coming. It might be his personal opinion but certainly not that of Brazil as host nation and the International Olympic Committee, IOC has not stated otherwise.
“There’s nowhere in the world that crime does not exist. I can tell you that as a responsible NOC, we’re working with the Nigerian Embassy in Brazil and monitoring the happenings there. We also have met with the Brazilian authorities before now and have our security measures put in place. This was the same way talks started with the Zika virus and we went to Brazil to see things for ourselves. Nigerian athletes can be rest assured of their safety in Brazil,” he stated.
Rivaldo, had told the world that visitors should stay away from the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro because of the danger of violence.
The 2002 World Cup winner posted the warning on his Instagram account and mentioned the case of a 17-year-old woman killed last Saturday in a shootout.
Ana Beatriz Pereira Frade was shot on Saturday morning by an armed gang on a main road known as the Yellow Line road connecting the city’s international airport with most of the Olympic venues.
“Things are getting uglier here every day,” Rivaldo wrote. “I advise everyone with plans to visit Brazil for the Olympics in Rio — to stay home. You’ll be putting your life at risk here.
“This is without even speaking about the state of public hospitals and all the Brazilian political mess. Only God can change the situation in our Brazil.”
The Olympics commence in just under three months.
In a recent statement, Amnesty International said at least 11 people had been killed in police shootings in Rio’s favelas in April alone. It said at least 307 people were killed by police last year.