President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will be in Copenhagen on 2 October to support Rio de Janeiro’s bid to host the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Lula will participate in Rio 2016’s last presentation to the International Olympic Committee, at the IOC Session in the Danish capital, directly before the vote that will determine the Host City for the biggest sports event on the planet in 2016. Lula’s presence was confirmed today during a Rio 2016 event in Berlin, where the World Athletics Championships will begin tomorrow.         

The announcement of Lula’s presence was made by governor of Rio, Sérgio Cabral. “Lula has personally confirmed that he will be at the IOC event. Rio de Janeiro’s bid is very strong, as is the Brazilian economy. The president’s presence in Copenhagen symbolizes the support of the entire Brazilian people for the Olympic project. It’s a further demonstration of our commitment,” said the governor.

Rio 2016 president, Carlos Arthur Nuzman, emphasized the importance of Lula’s engagement in the city’s Olympic campaign. “The president has always been firmly behind us and has worked hard for Rio’s Olympic bid. The confirmation of his participation in the last presentation before the vote to elect the Host City is further evidence of his confidence in the bid. We have all three levels of government united by sport and making their fullest efforts for the bid,” said Nuzman. 

In Berlin, Rio’s bid team reaffirmed the formula they have been following throughout the campaign to host the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games: a lot of hard work and complete unity between Rio 2016 and the three levels of government. In addition to Cabral and Nuzman, the announcement of Lula’s participation was attended by Mayor Eduardo Paes, national secretary for elite sport, Ricardo Leyser, and Rio 2016 secretary general, Carlos Roberto Osório “We are working harder than ever to win this race and are full of optimism. We’ve done our homework and Rio de Janeiro is ready to receive the 2016 Olympic Games,” said Paes.