(ATR) Brian Cookson tells Around the Rings he couldn’t have wished for a better start to the Olympics, despite a security scare near the finish line of the men’s road race.
Belgian Greg van Avermaet outsprinted Denmark's Jakob Fuglsang to snatch gold in a thrilling 237.5 km race wove through the forests around Rio and took in its spectacular coastline. Poland's Rafal Majka had led after Italy's Vincenzo Nibali collided with Colombian Sergio Henao on the final descent but was overtaken as his rivals turned up the gas in the final kilometer.
Under blue skies and with the waves lapping the shoreline at Copacabana beach, the UCI president had high praise for the "fantastically-designed course" after six hours or dramatic racing.
"We had everything – cross winds, cobbles, short hills, long hills, testing and tricky descents," Cookson told ATR at the finish line.
"What a fantastic set of images for the cameras we have provided for the opening day of the Olympics. It has been an absolutely brilliant backdrop."
IAAF president Sebastian Coe was seen congratulating Cookson on a great road race. Dutch King Willem, a former IOC member, was also among the dignitaries in the VIP area near the finish line. Both told ATR they had enjoyed the dramatic race.
Princess Anne, an IOC member from Great Britain, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, Dutch member Camiel Eurlings and Italian Olympic Committee president Giovanni Malago were also spotted along the beach watching the race unfold on big screens.
Bomb Scare Rocks Copacabana
The thrills and spills of road cycling took the headlines after a troubled build-up to the Games. But news of a controlled bomb explosion near the finish line halfway through the race threatened to overshadow the sport.
UCI spokesman Sebastien Gillot had been sitting 50m away when a bomb disposal officer detonated a suspect bag that had been thrown from a window onto the street next to the start/finish line. Some journalists working up at the venue media center at Forte de Copacabana a few hundred meters away had heard a loud bang.
In comments to ATR, Gillot praised the Brazilian authorities handling of the security incident.
He said the police and bomb disposal squad were quickly on the scene. "There was absolutely no panic," he said, adding that police blocked the road and dealt with the situation in 20 minutes. "They seemed to be really efficient."
On Sunday, the women cyclists take to the roads of Rio for what promises to be another exciting day of action.
The time trials for men and women are next Wednesday.
Reported by Mark Bisson in Copacabana
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