IPC Complete Week of Meetings in Rio, Brazil

"A lot of progress has been made since the last time we met which is extremely encouraging and I’d like to thank Rio 2016 President Carlos Nuzman and his team for their continued hard work."

An International Paralympic Committee (IPC) delegation including Vice President Greg Hartung, Chief Executive Officer Xavier Gonzalez and Paralympic Games Senior Manager Thanos Kostopoulos has concluded a week of activity in Rio de Janeiro to see how preparations are going for the 2016 Paralympic Games.

Hartung is a member of the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Co-ordination Commission for the Rio 2016 Games which met for second time in Rio to observe the progress made so far.

This included meetings with government officials, venue tours and updates from the Organizing Committee’s in different areas. The Co-ordination Commission was also updated on preparations for the Paralympic Games.

Following the conclusion of the IOC’s Co-ordination Commission, the IPC held an Executive Project Review with Rio 2016 on Friday 10 June.

The Organizing Committee presented to the IPC their plans on different areas including Rio 2016 organizational structure and its focus on the planning of the Paralympic Games. Sport and venues updates were also given after the inclusion of two new sports (Para-Triathlon and Para-Canoe) in the Paralympic Sport programme as well as the progress on the development of the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games emblem which will be launched later this year.

Another important part of the visit was the progress reports from all levels of Government which made clear of the intention to leave a long and lasting legacy for people with an impairment in Rio after the Games. Updates were given on accessibility initiatives, social inclusion as well as sport programmes.

Xavier Gonzalez said: “A lot of progress has been made since the last time we met which is extremely encouraging and I’d like to thank Rio 2016 President Carlos Nuzman and his team for their continued hard work.

“One area which we are particularly excited about is the launch of the Paralympic Games emblem.

“The emblem will gain national and international exposure and will be the symbol of the event. It needs to have the right look and feel for the Games and feature the Agitos, the symbol of the Paralympic Movement. We are confident the final design will achieve this.”

The Rio 2016 Paralympic Games will take place 7-18 September 2016 and will consist of 22 sporting events. For further information, please visit www.rio2016.com.

Related Images

Imagen

Caption

Rio 2016 Paralympic Emblem Icon