World Rugby officials are crossing their fingers that the venue selected to stage their matches at next year’s Rio Olympics will be ready in time, even though construction on the stadium has not started with just a year to go.
Rugby, returning to the Olympics for the first time since 1924, will be played at a temporary arena in the Deodoro Zone.
World Rugby’s chief executive, Brett Gosper, visited Rio de Janeiro about a month ago and said he had been assured by local organisers that the stadium would be ready, though he admitted there was some anxiety about how late they were leaving it.