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As Rio de Janeiro dismantles the Olympics in Brazil, attention will soon return to its pre-Olympic woes, including an economic crisis the depths of which haven’t been seen for 30 years and political upheaval with this week’s impeachment trial of suspended President Dilma Rousseff on charges of manipulating the budget.
Nevertheless, Pedro Miguel da Costa e Silva, minister-counsellor at the Brazilian embassy in Ottawa, maintains that the Games were a win for his country and, in particular, for his hometown of Rio.
“Rio is my city and I’m very proud of what we achieved,” said the second-in-command at the embassy, who was speaking for the ambassador.
He admitted there “was a lot of bad press in advance of the Games in Rio” which led people to anticipate “a poor and negative Games” but, he maintains that in the face of that, “the results were very positive and I think that in the next few days and weeks, more favourable opinions will come out from those who were there, the athletes and the public and those who travelled there.”
He noted that it was an historic Olympics — it was the first time they were held in Brazil, and, indeed, the first time they were held anywhere in South America.
“It was an opportunity to show a bit of our city,” he said. “Anyone who goes there comes away amazed. Brazilians are very friendly people, like Canadians, and I think Cariocas represented that well to the world. I think it was a chance to do away with the stereotypes and give a richer image of our city and our people.”
Regarding the bad press and glitches that were reported before the Games began, the diplomat said he can’t recall an Olympics where the press wasn’t fixated on reporting the negatives prior to the opening ceremonies.
“The press always focuses on the negative aspects, sometimes more than others,” he said. “Since it was an Olympic Games held in a developing country, the press emphasized more the negative aspects of what was happening, but if you look at the bigger picture it was a more positive result.”
He didn’t deny the glitches, but said he has just returned from a vacation in Europe and has a lot of the same complaints that were voiced by those attending the Games in Rio.
“I experienced long lineups, poor service in restaurants and my luggage was lost by Air Canada on my return last week. I haven’t seen it since.”
This type of thing — even food poisoning — doesn’t happen only in Brazil, he said. “People think this happens only in developing countries but it also happens in developed countries.”
His take is that overall, very few people got sick and there were very few issues concerning infrastructure — people got around, he said, and attended the Games.
“The athletes could perform,” he added. “There were so many records broken.”
He congratulated Canada on its 22 medals and noted that for Brazil, it was record-breaking in terms of medals won. “But the important thing is seeing more athletes participate. The sportsmanship and the way they played meant so much. I’m happy for the medals and, from a personal point of view, I’m very happy for the gold medal in soccer. But most of all, I was happy with the way the athletes showed such energy and sportsmanship. That makes me proud.”
ANNUAL WELCOME TEA
The IWCO will hold its annual welcome tea on Sept. 13 at the Orleans United Church, 1111 Orléans Blvd., Gloucester, from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. to welcome new and existing members of the international community to Ottawa.
Jennifer Campbell (editor@diplomatonline.com) is the editor of Diplomat magazine.
Estonia participated at the 21st Casino Lac-Leamy Sound and Light international fireworks competition July 13. An Estonian-inspired dinner was served at the Grand Hall of the Canadian Museum of History prior to the fireworks show. From left: Ivo Melder, owner, RUF Wireworks, Estonia; Estonian Ambassador Gita Kalmet; Claude Hamelin, president of the casino’s Sound of Light show, and Yanick Roy, its artistic director. Photo: Ulle Baum
Pakistani High Commissioner Tariq Azim Khan held a flag-raising on August 14 to mark the 69th anniversary of Pakistan’s independence day. He celebrated with the members of the Pakistani community. Photo: Ulle Baum
Pakistani High Commissioner Tariq Azim Khan held an event to celebrate Pakistani mangoes. From left, Japanese Ambassador Kenjiro Monji and his wife, Etsuko, Khan, and Chinese Ambassador Luo Zhaohui. Photo: Ulle Baum
Malaysia: Malaysian High Commissioner Dato’ Aminahtun Karim Shaharudin hosted an “afternoon with Malaysia” event introducing her country’s culture and tourism to the lucky bidder of the event, which she donated for a Head of Mission Association event. Photo: Ulle Baum
A farewell reception for Korean defence attaché Col. Choi Jan Ming, took place at the embassy July 25. From left, Ming, Lt.-Gen. Guy R. Thibault, vice-chief of defence staff, and Angela Son, wife of colonel Choi.Photo: Ulle Baum
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Nevertheless, Pedro Miguel da Costa e Silva, minister-counsellor at the Brazilian embassy in Ottawa, maintains that the Games were a win for his country and, in particular, for his hometown of Rio.
“Rio is my city and I’m very proud of what we achieved,” said the second-in-command at the embassy, who was speaking for the ambassador.
He admitted there “was a lot of bad press in advance of the Games in Rio” which led people to anticipate “a poor and negative Games” but, he maintains that in the face of that, “the results were very positive and I think that in the next few days and weeks, more favourable opinions will come out from those who were there, the athletes and the public and those who travelled there.”
He noted that it was an historic Olympics — it was the first time they were held in Brazil, and, indeed, the first time they were held anywhere in South America.
“It was an opportunity to show a bit of our city,” he said. “Anyone who goes there comes away amazed. Brazilians are very friendly people, like Canadians, and I think Cariocas represented that well to the world. I think it was a chance to do away with the stereotypes and give a richer image of our city and our people.”
Regarding the bad press and glitches that were reported before the Games began, the diplomat said he can’t recall an Olympics where the press wasn’t fixated on reporting the negatives prior to the opening ceremonies.
“The press always focuses on the negative aspects, sometimes more than others,” he said. “Since it was an Olympic Games held in a developing country, the press emphasized more the negative aspects of what was happening, but if you look at the bigger picture it was a more positive result.”
He didn’t deny the glitches, but said he has just returned from a vacation in Europe and has a lot of the same complaints that were voiced by those attending the Games in Rio.
“I experienced long lineups, poor service in restaurants and my luggage was lost by Air Canada on my return last week. I haven’t seen it since.”
This type of thing — even food poisoning — doesn’t happen only in Brazil, he said. “People think this happens only in developing countries but it also happens in developed countries.”
His take is that overall, very few people got sick and there were very few issues concerning infrastructure — people got around, he said, and attended the Games.
“The athletes could perform,” he added. “There were so many records broken.”
He congratulated Canada on its 22 medals and noted that for Brazil, it was record-breaking in terms of medals won. “But the important thing is seeing more athletes participate. The sportsmanship and the way they played meant so much. I’m happy for the medals and, from a personal point of view, I’m very happy for the gold medal in soccer. But most of all, I was happy with the way the athletes showed such energy and sportsmanship. That makes me proud.”
ANNUAL WELCOME TEA
The IWCO will hold its annual welcome tea on Sept. 13 at the Orleans United Church, 1111 Orléans Blvd., Gloucester, from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. to welcome new and existing members of the international community to Ottawa.
Jennifer Campbell (editor@diplomatonline.com) is the editor of Diplomat magazine.
Estonia participated at the 21st Casino Lac-Leamy Sound and Light international fireworks competition July 13. An Estonian-inspired dinner was served at the Grand Hall of the Canadian Museum of History prior to the fireworks show. From left: Ivo Melder, owner, RUF Wireworks, Estonia; Estonian Ambassador Gita Kalmet; Claude Hamelin, president of the casino’s Sound of Light show, and Yanick Roy, its artistic director. Photo: Ulle Baum
Pakistani High Commissioner Tariq Azim Khan held a flag-raising on August 14 to mark the 69th anniversary of Pakistan’s independence day. He celebrated with the members of the Pakistani community. Photo: Ulle Baum
Pakistani High Commissioner Tariq Azim Khan held an event to celebrate Pakistani mangoes. From left, Japanese Ambassador Kenjiro Monji and his wife, Etsuko, Khan, and Chinese Ambassador Luo Zhaohui. Photo: Ulle Baum
Malaysia: Malaysian High Commissioner Dato’ Aminahtun Karim Shaharudin hosted an “afternoon with Malaysia” event introducing her country’s culture and tourism to the lucky bidder of the event, which she donated for a Head of Mission Association event. Photo: Ulle Baum
A farewell reception for Korean defence attaché Col. Choi Jan Ming, took place at the embassy July 25. From left, Ming, Lt.-Gen. Guy R. Thibault, vice-chief of defence staff, and Angela Son, wife of colonel Choi.Photo: Ulle Baum
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