Australia’s Olympic Team Refuses to Live in Rio’s Athletes Village – blogged by: @proudlylauren

Image: @gettysport

Australia’s Olympic team was supposed to move in to the athletes’ village at the 2016 Rio Olympics in Brazil last Thursday, but refused to do so when the day actually came. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the 2016 Olympic Committee deemed the living arrangements “uninhabitable” following an inspection that revealed electrical and plumbing issues.

According to the committee, problems included blocked toilets, leaking pipes, exposed wires, and leaky ceilings. The team however didn’t refuse to stay until they performed a “stress test” of the water system: turning on multiple faucets and shower’s at the same time. Australia’s committee leader, Kitty Chiller, said the test failed, and resulted in water coming down the walls, a strong smell of gas, and an electrical shortage.

The team responded by checking into a nearby hotel until changes are made.

The mayor of Rio de Janeiro responded to the team’s distaste of his facilities by reminding them this facility was better than the one in Sydney, Australia, and offering to put a kangaroo outside of the building in the village to “make them feel at home”.

Team’s from everywhere else have made no complaints about the conditions so far but it’s clear Rio still has some work to do before opening ceremonies in two weeks. 

Photo Credit: Buda Mendes / Getty