2009年10月，一个重要的消息在丹麦首都哥本哈根宣布，里约热内卢击败了马德里、东京和芝加哥，成为了2016年奥林匹克运动会的主办城市。巴西申奥小组欢呼雀跃、手舞足蹈地喊着：“我们做到了！我们做到了！”
It was a *monumental moment: Not only because the whole world saw Rio, a city in a developing country, outperform the best bids from developed countries, but also because Rio was expected to be the first South American city to host the Olympics. It seemed to be Rio’s time to thrive.
那是一个纪念性的时刻：不仅仅是因为在全世界的见证下，里约，一个发展中国家的城市，在众多发达国家竞争者中脱颖而出，更是因为里约将会成为第一个举办奥运会的南美洲城市。这将是里约的辉煌时刻。
Fast forward to 2016. Rio de Janeiro is struggling to prepare. In the months leading up to the Olympics, the city has been *battered by waves of embarrassment and public health crises.
2016年转眼便至。而里约热内卢此刻却还在艰难地准备着。在奥运会开赛前的几个月里，这座城市已经经受了多次窘况以及公共卫生危机的重击。
Brazil has suffered an economic recession and a slew of political scandals, including the *impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff and the massive corruption exposed within a state-run oil company. The outbreak of Zika, a mosquito-borne virus, has sparked health concerns in the region. Some of the Olympic venues weren’t even completed a few weeks ago. On top of that, the threat of terrorist attacks and water contamination has caused some *onlookers to wonder if Rio was really ready to host the games.
巴西遭受了经济衰退和一连串的政治丑闻，这其中包括总统迪尔玛•罗塞夫遭弹劾以及一家巴西国营石油公司的大规模贪腐被曝光。蚊媒病毒寨卡病毒的爆发，也引发了对该地区卫生状况的担忧。一些奥运场馆甚至在几周前依旧没有建成。不仅如此，恐怖袭击的威胁和水污染也让一些人怀疑里约是否真的能办好本届奥运会。
Moving forward
向前迈进
Yet, despite all the difficulties, Rio has been moving forward. With preventative action taken against Zika, a study published by the University of Cambridge revealed that the “risks of infection are minimal”. In spite of a few *hiccups, the venues are now ready for the incoming athletes. Rio has even added a few landmarks to its skyline: Most notably, the new skeleton-shaped Museum of Tomorrow has made the coastal city more beautiful than ever.
然而，尽管存在许多困难，里约还是在不断地向前迈进。在巴西采取了一系列预防寨卡病毒的措施后，剑桥大学发布的一项研究认为“目前感染病毒的风险微乎其微。”尽管有许多小问题，体育场馆已就绪。里约甚至还增添了不少宏伟的地标性建筑：最著名的还数新建成的骨架结构的明日博物馆，为这座美丽的滨海城市再添色不少。
Controversy still lingers around the upcoming games, though. A large number of Russian athletes will be banned from competition for state sponsored *doping, and some of the world’s top golfers will skip the Olympic Games for fear of the Zika virus.
尽管如此，接下来的赛事依然争议不断。之前有调查显示俄罗斯体育部门操纵运动员使用兴奋剂并对此掩盖，不少俄罗斯运动员因此将面临禁赛；因担心感染寨卡病毒，一些世界顶级的高尔夫球手将不会出赛。
Yet, there are still plenty of reasons to be optimistic. A cross-nation refugee team, consisting of 10 players, is expected to debut at Rio. And after four years of hard work, China is sending its largest delegation–416 athletes, including 35 Olympic champions–to Rio in hopes of scoring its largest summer medal count yet. These athletes will compete in 210 events, covering 26 different sports.
但是，还是有很多理由足以让我们变得乐观起来。一支由10名运动员组成，来自不同国家的难民代表队将会征战里约奥运会。而经过四年的艰苦训练，中国将会派出由416名运动员组成，包括35名奥运冠军在内的史上规模最大的奥运代表团前往里约——希望能在本届夏季奥运会金牌榜上登顶。这些奥运健儿们将会参与26个大项，210个小项的比赛角逐。
The Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games is set to kick off on Aug 5. Despite all the *turbulence, Brazil’s interim president Michel Temer recently assured the public that the stage is set for a successful competition.
里约热内卢奥林匹克运动会将于8月5日开幕。尽管先前经历了诸多曲折，巴西代总统米歇尔•特梅尔近日向公众承诺，本届奥运会将会是一次成功的比赛。
“Brazil is ready to receive all of the visitors who will be enjoying the pleasure of watching the world’s elite international sports athletes compete,” Temer said in a statement. “And, surely, we will have a great deal to show the 5 billion viewers from around the world who will be watching the Games as well. Brazil awaits you with open arms.”
“巴西已经准备好迎接所有前来奥运会的游客们。他们将会观看到世界顶尖运动员同台竞技，并享受其中的乐趣，”特梅尔在一份声明中表示。“当然，我们也有许多内容想向在世界各地观看奥运会的50亿观众展现。现在，巴西已经张开双臂，恭候大家的到来。”
