Olympic spirit lights up Carnival celebrations in Rio de Janeiro
With less than six months until the Rio 2016 Games begin, city embraces Olympism in street parties and Olympians past and present join the parades at the Sambódromo
Let’s get this party started: Rio 2016 mascots Tom and Vinicius at the Sambódromo (Rio 2016/Gabriel Nascimento)
“Feeling this energy, it makes you excited… the Games are here!” The words of Brazilian volleyball player Gabi Guimarães on Sunday night (7 February), at the Sambódromo, the home of Rio Carnival. She said the celebrations were just “a glimpse” of what is to come in August 2016 when Rio de Janeiro hosts the first Olympic Games in South America.
At the Sambódromo – which will host the archery and marathon finish during the Games – the Rio 2016 spirit was in full effect as mascots Vinicius and Tom got the celebrations up and running.
Olympic marathon runner Vanderlei Cordeiro de Lima took part in the União da Ilha samba school parade (Foto: Rio 2016/ Alex Ferro)
On the first day of the festivities, the União da Ilha samba school brought together a mix of big names and young hopefuls from Brazilian sport. Four years after paying tribute to the London 2012 Games, the group returned to the theme with the narrative “Olympic by nature. Everyone finds themselves in Rio”. The traditional samba school from Ilha do Governador welcomed the arrival of the Games in South America with the lyrics:
“The Games are going to start
We’re all brothers
The Gods want to stay
And everyone falls into the samba”
Members of the Brazilian Olympic team paraded with the União da Ilha samba school (Photo: Rio 2016/Alex Ferro)
During União da Ilha’s parade, sport and samba combined from beginning to end. Vanderlei Cordeira de Lima, who won the Pierre de Coubertin medal after finishing third in the Athens 2004 marathon despite being attacked by a spectator while leading, led the way, carrying a replica of the Rio 2016 Olympic torch. The final float was packed with Brazilian Olympic medallists, such as volleyball players Giba, Giovane and Jaque Silva, and swimmer Ricardo Prado, as well as current athletes, including synchronised swimming duet Duda and Luísa, and volleyball player Gabi, with everyone signing the samba school’s lyrics.
On Ash Wednesday, the judges chose the Carnival champions: Estação Primeira de Mangueira took the title after a 12-year wait. This traditional group is from the samb-mad community that Usain Bolt visited last year – check out the video below...
