Olympic Games open in Brazil today

05.08.2016
Brazil

The XXXI Olympic Games will be held in Rio de Janeiro from August 5th to the 21st.

Statistics

A total of 206 countries will take part in the games. This is a record number. Participating separately under the Olympic flag will be a group of refugees, which is a novelty for the event. Tightened security measures have been implemented in Brazil and those suspected of involvement in terrorist organizations have been arrested in the run up to the games.

Geopolitical aspects

These will be the first Olympic Games taking place in South America and the second in Latin America since the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City. In 2014, the IOC expressed the view that Brazil was behind schedule on training facilities and that the games could be moved to another location. Just on the eve of the games, Western media reports spread the news of dangerous diseases in Brazil, which reflected a certain racial-colonial approach among some countries such as the US and Britain.

Brazil is a member of BRICS and represents so-called “Second World” according to the criteria of liberal progressivist theory.

Political aspects

The run up to the Olympic Games has been preoccupied with the doping sandal surrounding Russian athletes. The US intentionally organized the dissemination of rumors and distortions on this matter. However, IOC Head Thomas Bach has decided to admit athletes from Russia to the games.

In addition, the first teams from the breakaway regions of Kosovo and South Sudan will participate in the games.

Ideological aspects

In the modern era, the Olympic Games were the fruits of the efforts of Pierre de Coubertin, who saw in the games an instrument for reviving paganism. However, in contrast to classical paganism whose adherents believe in immortality or reincarnation, the pagan philosophy of contemporary Olympism speaks exclusively about the physical body and character. It does not refer to God or the immortality of the soul. In addition, in contrast to the Hellenistic period of the Olympic Games during which wars and any measures disrupting or preventing peace were ceased, the Olympics have since become a field for political confrontation.

In the postmodern era, the Olympic Games are not only an element of the society of the spectacle, but also a separate industry through which billions of dollars are circulated.

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Olympic Games
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