Rio Olympics venues abandoned and in disrepair while Maracana Stadium power is off because nobody can pay the bills

Feb 20, 2017

SHOCKING photos show Olympic venues abandoned and in utter disreapir just six months after the Rio Games.

Seats are strewn all around the Maracana Stadium where the power has been turned off because no-one can pay the energy bills.

The Maracana Stadium already looks in decay just six months after the Olympics — Rio venues already look in decay just six months after the Olympics

Sewage and faeces flow throw the Rio slums despite promises of a clean-up before last summer’s Olympics.

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And a golf course that drew outrage as it was built in a national wildlife reserve is, like so many other places, deserted and dilapidated.

Water in one event pool has turned a dirty orange colour and the Olympic Village is empty, soulless and shabby.

But it is the images of the Maracana that might seem most scandalous.

Those pictures, above all others, show the apparent waste from the two-week, multi-billion-pound extravaganza that millions of Brazilians felt was an insult to years of poverty and under-investment.

Dirty-looking orange water is one of the sights that has replaced the excitement of the Olympics — Orange water is one of the sights that has replaced excitement of the Olympics

Children play around what was once a proud arena of the world centrepiece of sport — Children play at what was a proud arena of the world centrepiece of sport

Olympic venues in Rio have been abandoned, a sad indictment of elite-level sport

The city had promised to create a wonderful legacy for the city after the Games had been and gone.

Plans were for the aquatic centre to be dismantled and made into a series of municipal pools, while the handball arena or 'Arena of the Future' had been earmarked to be dismantled and become four schools.

But when SunSport visited the park in Rio back in April last year, things did not seem to be running smoothly before the Games had even began.

The velodrome, where Bradley Wiggins, Laura Trott and Jason Kenny ended up starring for Team GB, was in a concerning state of incompleteness.

It is so hard to see how these sites hosted an Olympics as recently as last summer

Abandoned and wasted - sad monuments to the Rio Games — Abandoned and wasted - another sad monument to the Rio Games

A woman with a baby stands in front of the Deodoro Sports Complex

But the city did manage to turn around and put on an impressive show, even if some athletes and media pundits admitted it was rough around the edges.

Many questioned why Rio was hosting a Games when they could not fill the stadia, with marquee events like the athletics - where Usain Bolt was on the track - and swimming not being filled.

Unsurprisingly the Maracana was full for the football, as Brazil won men's Olympic gold on penalties, but now even the great ground that has had the likes of Pele, Socrates and Neymar gracing its turf, lies in disrepair.

Rio venues look so sad and stark now, sparking concern about what happens after many Olympics — Rio venues look so sad and stark now, sparking concern about what happens next

The colour and condition of the Maracan surface sums up the plight of the stadium

Olympic structures in Rio de Janeiro are already in decline following the Summer Games — Olympic structures in Rio de Janeiro are already in decline after the Games

Tags: Rio 2016 Sport

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