via Google MapsAn undated Google Maps photograph of the Trump Hotel shows the building still very much under construction.
A new Trump-branded hotel in the Barra de Tijuca neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro is scrambling to finish its construction by late July in time for this summer’s Olympics, which begin August 5th.According to the Brazilian site Globe Esporte, seven international sports federations slated to stay at the Trump Hotel for the Summer Games were informed by Olympic officials earlier this week that they are concerned the hotel’s construction will not be finished.
No athletes have plans to stay in the hotel, but precautionary back-up lodging options for the officials, coaches and trainers scheduled to stay at the Trump Hotel reportedly have been already been arranged.
“That is the one we fear,” Agberto Guimaraes, Rio 2016’s director of sport, said of the new Trump hotel from Switzerland last week, according to Bloomberg.
Trump Hotels was not immediately available when reached for comment.
Builders behind Rio’s first Trump-branded hotel are racing to open before the Olympics https://t.co/u0gkHstY1Spic.twitter.com/Y0ERy32Zr3
— Bloomberg (@business) April 26, 2016
The Trump Hotel is not the only hotel in Rio racing to finish its construction in time for the Olympics. The opening of two Holiday Inn properties, also in Barra de Tijuca, has been postponed until 2017, well after the Games conclude.
Still, the construction’s potential photo-finish is indicative of the larger infrastructural problems plaguing Rio with less than four months until the Opening Ceremonies.
Most worryingly, construction of the the indoor cycling track has missed several deadlines, causing a test event for cyclists to be pushed back until late June. Similarly, a crucial subway extension that will deliver fans from downtown Rio to various Olympic venues is still under construction, and there is still no clear timetable for its completion. Last week, a stretch of the city’s new bike path — which was opened in January and touted as a legacy of the Olympics — collapsed, killing at least two people.
According to Bloomberg, a recent IOC inspection delegation concluded that “thousands and thousands of little things” are left to complete.