A construction worker lays blocks at the Maracana soccer stadium as it undergoes renovations during a tour for journalists organized by the Rio 2016 Committee in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Monday, Nov. 19, 2012. The IOC Official Debriefing of the London 2012 Games will take place from Nov. 17 to 21 in Rio de Janeiro. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Workers return as IOC makes visit to Maracana

Published: 08:09:09 PM, Tue 19 February 2013 UTC

SAO PAULO (AP) — Construction was back under way at Maracana stadium on Tuesday as the IOC arrived to inspect the venue which will host the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.

But in the second day of its three-day visit, the IOC coordination commission for the 2016 Games was met by news that the venue of the diving competition may be switched to a different location after a request by the international swimming federation, and the company claiming ownership of the land where the Olympic golf course will be built said it will officially notify the IOC about an ongoing legal dispute.

Work had been halted at Maracana on Monday as employees demanded better wages and benefits, but they returned to the construction site after Rio's governor got involved in the negotiation and said a better offer was going to be made.

The union representing the workers said a full-scale strike was still possible depending on the new offer, but work was under way as the IOC's coordination commission stopped by the iconic football stadium, which is being refurbished for the 2014 World Cup and the Rio Games.

"Everything was normal when the IOC visited," said Nilson Duarte, the president of the union representing the workers. "A decision on a strike will be made by the end of the week, but it appears that there will be an agreement that will fulfill the workers' demands."

A strike would likely create problems to get the stadium ready for the Confederations Cup, the World Cup warm-up tournament which will be played June 15-30. Maracana will host three matches, including the final. The stadium was originally scheduled to be ready in December but FIFA was forced to extend its deadlines because of ongoing delays.

Although the Maracana shouldn't give the IOC much of a headache, the Olympic golf course may be reason for concern as construction is yet to begin with three years to go before the sport makes its return to the games after more than 100 years.

Local Olympic organizers have downplayed problems related to the course, but the company claiming ownership of the land where it is planned to be built said Tuesday that it will give the IOC official documents explaining the ongoing legal dispute involving the area, including a court decision saying that any construction on the land will be deemed illegal in case a ruling eventually goes in the company's way.

The lawyer for Elmway's Participacoes, Sergio Antunes Lima Jr., said it was important to make sure the IOC officials are fully informed of the problems involving the land during their visit.

There is no timetable on a final decision about who actually owns the land, but construction of the course, which was initially planned for last October, must start soon to guarantee it's ready for test events before the 2016 Olympics.

And there were reports on Tuesday that there might be a change at the diving venue. It was originally scheduled to take place at the Maria Lenk complex, but local media said the international swimming federation told local organizers that it wants to use the venue just for the water polo competition. It reportedly said it would rather have the diving events at a temporary venue at the Forte de Copacabana, near the famed beach and the Sugar Loaf mountain.

The new plans reportedly have already been presented to the IOC. Local organizers could not immediately be reached for comment.

Rio had already announced last year that the rugby venue won't be built where it was originally planned, while a location for the field hockey arena was still being negotiated with the sport's international federation.

The coordination commission is in Rio to meet with local organizers and monitor the progress made at venues and infrastructure sites for the first Olympics in South America. It is its first visit of the year, and it comes just two months after the IOC told local organizers that "time is ticking" and they must attack the project "with all vigor" to guarantee successful games in 2016.

IOC President Jacques Rogge said last week he doesn't think he will need to publicly warn organizers about delays, but Brazil has been under pressure to show that preparations are on track.

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