Barra Olympic Park, which will be the heart of the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games, is beginning to rise out of the ground. As the earthworks, foundation construction and installation of underground infrastructure – such as water, gas, electricity and drainage networks – draw to a close, the first structures are beginning to take shape (see photos below).

“The Olympic Park works are gathering speed,” said Alexandre Techima, Rio 2016’s Infrastructure Integration Director. “All the venue foundation works have been started and the constructors are meeting the scheduled targets. The construction will become more visible as the metal structures of the floor levels and roofs are mounted, as is the case with the IBC, where this is already happening, and Olympic Halls 1, 2 and 3, where this will be begin in August.”

Barra Olympic Park’s nine venues will host more than 20 sports during the Rio 2016 Games (Photo: Municipal Olympic Company)

Work on the foundations and pillars of the three Olympic Halls, which will form part of the Olympic Training Centreafter the Games, are in the final phase, with the walls and first levels of the third hall already under construction.

Works on the Olympic Tennis Centre, Rio Olympic Velodrome, Olympic Hall 4 and the Olympic Aquatics Stadium are moving towards the final stages of foundation construction, while the first metallic stakes and pillars are being installed. This map shows which sports will be in which venues.

At the International Broadcast Centre (IBC) site, where the foundation works and stake and block installation are in the final phases, work has begun on concreting the first floor and mounting the metallic structure of the second floor. At the Main Media Centre (MPC) site, containment work has been finished and foundations are close to completion.

Construction works at the Barra Olympic Park, which comprise many different projects, are scheduled to be completed between the second quarter of 2015 and the first quarter of 2016. 

See how Barra Olympic Park is starting to take shape in the photo gallery below:

Rio 2016 celebrates two years until the Olympic Games by stepping up the pace 
Progress made in venue construction, test events and education programme, with volunteers, tickets and mascots on the horizon 
The official 2 years to go photo can be downloaded in high resolution here: http://we.tl/EUJNi8oITh
Please credit: Alex Ferro / Rio 2016

With exactly two years to go before the opening of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, preparations for the world’s greatest sporting event are moving forwards at full steam. The Aquece Rio International Sailing Regatta 2014 has fired the starting pistol for a series of 45 test events, and a host of other initiatives are in the pipeline for this year, such as the launch of thevolunteer programme, an announcement on ticketing and the unveiling of the Games’ most-loved personalities: the mascots. Meanwhile, construction across the four competition zones is progressing, with 55 per cent of venues now ready.

“With two years to go until the Games, we have concluded the planning phase and are now entering the operational preparation phase, when the competition structures begin to take shape and we get closer to the population,” said Rio 2016 President Carlos Nuzman.

Reaching the two-year milestone is being celebrated in style, with the launch of the ‘Look of the Games’ revealing the visual identity that will colour the Rio 2016 venues, tickets, uniforms and entire city in two years’ time.

As Rio prepares to host the world’s best athletes, the Olympic and Paralympic Village is taking shape and more than half of the competition venues are ready. At Barra Olympic Park, the foundations and underground infrastructure have been laid and the first buildings are rising out of the ground. Work in Deodoro, the second largest venue cluster, started in July, while in the Copacabana zone, Marina da Glória is currently hosting the first Rio 2016 test event, with more 300 of the world’s top sailors competing. In the fourth Games zone, the Maracanã Stadium passed the test of hosting FIFA World Cup matches, including the final, with flying colours earlier this year.

Infrastructure works in the city are also well underway, with transport projects such as the metro extension and new BRT lines progressing well, and the redevelopment of the port area is changing the face of a historic part of the city.

In addition to construction, the Games are also striving to make a difference socially. The Rio 2016 Education Programmewas officially launched in July, in partnership with the Rio city government, and will reach out to 162 schools.

“Rio 2016 is intensifying its relationship with society, in order to disseminate the principles of sport and the importance of sport practice, especially among young people, in Rio and throughout the country,” said Nuzman. “The Games will leave a huge legacy for both Rio and Brazil, that is starting to take shape. No other host city will have had such a big transformation from the Games as Rio.”

The release on Monday (4 August) of the draft test event calendar increased excitement about the high-level sports that Rio will host in the coming years, with more than 8,000 top athletes expected for 45 competitions, before the first Olympic and Paralympic Games in South America even begin.

“We have intensified contacts with the international sports community in order to keep them continuously updated on the progress, in a joint effort with the International Olympic Committee (IOC),” Nuzman added.

Sidney Levy, the Rio 2016 CEO, confirmed that the committee would remain on the right path. “We remain firmly committed to putting on fantastic Olympic Games, meeting our deadlines and within budget,” he said.

To celebrate the milestone staff from Rio 2016 and the Olympic Municipal Company were pictured forming the number '2' in the Sambodrome, which will host archery and marathon events in the 2016 Olympic Games.