Brazil to invest extra $500 million for Rio 2016
BRASILIA, Brazil — Brazil says it will invest an additional $500 million to prepare athletes ahead of the 2016 Rio Olympics, hoping to secure a top-10 finish in the medals table on home soil.
President Dilma Rousseff made the announcement on Thursday, saying the money will be spent on supporting athletes, purchasing modern training equipment and building more than 20 new Olympic training centers.
The country had already earmarked $750 million to help form athletes for 2016.
About $150 million were invested ahead of the London Games, when Brazil finished 22nd.
Brazil won a record 17 medals overall in London, two more than it did in Beijing and in Atlanta. It finished with the same three gold medals as in Beijing, two short of its record from the 2004 Athens Games.
