After concerns about crime in Rio de Janeiro during the Olympics reached a fever pitch with the mugging of US swimmer Ryan Lochte, Australian chef de mission Kitty Chiller has confirmed that the Australian Olympic Commission has banned Aussie athletes from tourist hotspots Copacabana and Ipanema after dark.
“Obviously safety and security has always been the primary concern for all our athletes and all our team members,” Chiller said.
“We’ve introduced some further security and safety protocols for those people travelling especially to Copa and Ipanema area to ensure above all else we retain all our team members safely and securely.”
The general vibe when I was in Rio last week speaking to some people associated with the US Olympic delegation was that athletes had been strongly warned by the State Department not to venture onto the beach after dark anyway. But it looks like that’s expressly forbidden by the Aussies.
Between the hours of 6pm and 6am, athletes can only travel via vehicle and not by foot. Chiller continued:
We are reiterating our initial protocols which is always travel in groups of three, but we’ve put now the Copa and Ipanema beaches – the sand – off limits. There has been a lot of increased petty criminal activity on the actual beaches.
A bit disappointing for the athletes that they can’t experience the great nighttime attractions Rio has to offer, but at the same time it’s nice not to be robbed, y’know?
Source: Courier Mail.
Photo: Getty Images.
