RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – JUNE 15: People walk past a protective sand barrier as construction continues on the Olympic beach volleyball stadium (L) on Copacabana beach following a temporary work stoppage due to a missing environmental permit on June 15, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The structure was also damaged by high waves recently and officials have now built a sand berm to protect the stadium from the nearby Atlantic ocean surf. The Rio 2016 Olympic Games commence August 5 amid a political and economic crisis in the country. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
OlympicsBy Harry Lyles Jr. on

There’s some more news out of Rio, and this piece of information might not be able to be topped on the crazy scale.

According to Reuters, parts of a mutilated body washed up on the sands of Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro close to where the beach volleyball will be taking place in August’s Olympics.

From Reuters:

The discovery, first reported to a newspaper by a Rio street vendor, is the latest to unnerve the city as it grapples with rising crime, a recession and exhausted state finances at a time when it hoped to be celebrating the first Olympics ever held in South America.

It was unclear Wednesday afternoon what conditions may have led to the mutilated body but a policeman standing guard by a security perimeter confirmed its existence to Reuters.

The washed up body is the latest concern in Rio, among countless things; most notably the Zika virus, water pollution, and delayed construction.

Among other things, from Reuters:

The Olympics also will play out with a backdrop of political instability as Brazil’s Senate tries suspended President Dilma Rousseff, who is accused of accounting tricks in the government budget, to determine whether she will be ousted for good. The trial is expected to finish after the games.

The state in recent months, even as it races to complete a new subway line and other key pieces of infrastructure promised for the Olympics, has missed crucial debt payments and has been forced to postpone purchasing and salary payments for everyone from public health workers to police.

Rio’s acting governor, Francisco Dornelles, earlier this month declared a financial emergency in the state because of budget shortfalls caused by a recession, plummeting oil revenues and a run-up in public expenditures in recent years.

The Olympics are set to start on August 5, which seems so far away when looking at everything that has gone wrong leading up to the games.

Also, we need to recognize this outstanding tweet response from Anne T. Donahue regarding a headline on this topic:

[Reuters]

About Harry Lyles Jr.

Harry Lyles Jr. is an Atlanta-based writer, and a Georgia State University graduate.

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