Culture

Rio 2016: The Calamity Games

When everything that can go wrong looks like it actually will, how much of a future can the Olympics have?
Workers inspect a set of Olympic Rings scheduled to be installed inside Olympic Park in Rio de Janeiro on July 30, 2016.Patrick Semansky/AP

Start with the Olympic Village, which is a shambles. “Not habitable,” says Team Australia. Spain and Sweden concur. The 2016 Olympic Games are just about to begin in Rio, and Rio isn’t ready.

Authorities are scrambling to bring on another 600 workers to finish construction in time for the games, which kick off later this week. There are hurdles to finishing everything from venues, hotels, and housing projects on time.