Is Rio Ready for Paralympians?

Alongside the Olympics, Brazil is also set to host the 2016 Paralympics – but is the city ready to welcome disabled competitors and spectators? Five-time Brazilian wheelchair dance champion Viviane Macedo says there's a lot to still to be done.

Published

8 months ago

Categories

Sports, World

Topics

Paralympic Games, South America

People

Eduardo Paes

Places

Brazil, Rio De Janeiro

Transcript

SCRIPT: For Viviane Macedo, a trip on the Rio metro is a daily challenge… She has to deal with steps, broken lifts, and unhelpful fellow travellers. The wheelchair dance champion says just getting around in the next Paralympic host city is a nightmare. SOUNDBITE 1 Viviane Macedo (Portuguese, 15 sec): “Here’s another broken lift – it’s hard to make people more aware. Mentalities change very slowly (pause) Oh look, that lift isn’t working either. Ok, I’ll have to use the escalator.” Viviane has to use her own strength to swing herself off the escalator. UPSOT (2 sec) “If you can’t manage it, you’re left stuck on the platform” It’s not just underground that Rio isn’t well adapted for its disabled residents – out in the street, Viviane has to deal with potholes, steep slopes and kerbs - a real obstacle course. In theory, half of all Rio’s buses are adapted for wheelchairs. The reality is rather different. SOUNDBITE 2 Viviane Macedo (Portuguese, 13 sec): "Well, we’ve been waiting half an hour, and finally a bus has stopped for me…. But its wheelchair lift isn’t working. So I can’t get on.” UPSOT Bus passenger (9 sec) "The bus company should be punished, they should get a big fine. Disabled people have rights, they should be respected, it’s unbelievable that thing isn’t working, it shouldn’t be allowed” Disabled Cariocas are starting to make their voices heard – Teresa Costa d’Amaral heads the Brazilian Institute for Disabled Rights. She says even Brazil’s celebrated Paralympic champions come home to find they have no support. SOUNDBITE 3 Teresa Costa d’Amaral, President of the Brazilian Institute for Disabled Rights, (Portuguese, 11 sec): "Sometimes Brazilian paralympic athletes can’t even feed themselves. It’s not rare to see them participate in a competition abroad, come back with glory, and then find themselves not even recognized as ordinary citizens.” Brazil won 43 medals in a strong showing in the London Paralympics - but the lack of facilities for disabled people is the Achilles heel of a city that will have to welcome 4200 Paralympians from 150 countries. SOUNDBITE 4 Eduardo Paes, mayor of Rio, (Portuguese, 9 sec): "The Games are putting us under pressure and highlighting the problems we have, reminding us that we can’t be proud of the states of our streets or the lack of access for disabled people." Wheelchair dance isn’t a Paralympic sport – but for Viviane, if the Rio Games leave a better legacy for Brazil’s 30 million wheelchair users, that will be a victory. SHOTLIST: RIO DE JANEIRO, SEPTEMBER 10, 2012, SOURCE AFPTV -Various images of Viviane in a Metro stattion waiting for a train, getting on the train, getting off the train, getting on an escalator -Various images of Viviane waiting for a bus, bus arrives and she tries to get on but can't, bus drives away -Various of Teresa at the Brazilian Institute for Disabled Rights -The mayor of Rio with Paralympic athletes returning to the city, at Rio Airport ///