Rio tests opening ceremony fireworks

Fireworks roared over Rio de Janeiro’s Maracana Stadium where rehearsals were underway on Thursday in a trial run for the Olympic opening ceremony in a little over a week’s time.

The details of the August 5 ceremony are still very much under wraps, but volunteer and art student, Camila Almeida, said preparations were coming along well.

“I can’t give away any of the surprise, but it is amazing, I am sure everyone is going to love it. I have asked my friends to record it because I won’t be able to watch it, I will be there, but it is really gorgeous,” said Almeida.

The spirit of celebration was lost in the surrounding area, however, where a local resident was robbed at knife-point by three young men.

Witnesses reported that it took the police an hour to arrive at the point where the robbery had taken place between the Maracana stadium and metro station, despite the country’s largest ever deployment of security personnel for the Games period.

“It is crazy, at the height of the Games. There is only a week to go so all these things going on in Rio have to be stopped immediately,” said student, Tiago Oliveira, at the site.

A total of 85,000 members of the armed forces, military, civil and federal police were deployed as of Sunday for the Rio 2016 Olympics.