We are still one year away, but the heart of Brazil is already beating faster. The generous Brazilian heart that insists on speeding when two of our biggest passions meet: embracing people from all over the world and competing with energy and fair play, in a magnificent sport spectacle.

It was this way for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

And it will be this way, starting from Aug. 5, 2016, when we light the Olympic flame of passion for sports and raise the flag of the five colored circles in our magnificent Maracana Stadium.

I think it is not by accident that Brazil has the honor of being the first country in South America to host the Olympic Games.


We are a country that -- besides our great and diverse nature -- is home to different peoples and cultures, with a history of tolerance and respect, which makes us a worldwide symbol of coexistence, hospitality and joy.

Our people -- workers, businessmen, students, scientists and artists -- managed to build one of the most open countries in the world with their creativity, kindness and solidarity.

We have built a strong culture of peace and work.

With these values we are working hard to make these Olympic Games the best party the global sports community has ever witnessed.

We achieved this in the World Cup and we have everything to do it again at the Summer Olympics in 2016.

It is a challenge that we are winning day by day, hour by hour, long before the competitions effectively begin.

The lesson started in investing in what is most important: our athletes.

It has been extended by massive investment in sports infrastructure, and reached its climax with the great urban renewal being made in Rio de Janeiro -- certainly the most beautiful scenery since ancient Greece to host the Olympic Games.

Over the past few years, we made massive public investments to support our best athletes, their coaches and their teams, with programs such as “Bolsa Atleta” (an allowance for athletes) and the Brazilian Medals Plan.

Our athletes of excellence, who have managed to improve their marks every competition, are our great idols and inspiration.

Concrete proof of this can be found in the results we obtained at the last Pan American Games.

These investments will bring even more lasting results, which will outlive the Olympics.

We are spreading sports practice among young people around the country, with investments in sports centers in all regions and all modalities.

This will be one of the greatest legacies that the Rio 2016 Summer Olympics will bring. We believe that education and sports are our best instruments to ensure inclusion and social integration, encouraging young people to fight for their goals, to live the joy of overcoming, to work as a team and respect the opponent.

Sport inspires the culture of cooperation, ethics of honor and hard work to achieve goals and celebrate achievements. When we add this to the happiness and self-esteem of our warm and hospitable people, this is the greatest legacy of the Olympic Games.

We will have also the monumental legacy of urban modernization of Rio de Janeiro, one of the most beautiful cities in the world and our greatest postcard.

Two-thirds of the total spending for the Rio Olympics is being invested in urban infrastructure works in the city.

These works are in diverse fields and include a new subway line, a light vehicle connecting the entire city center and a bus rapid transit system that will link the areas of competitions. All this investment is to greatly improve the public transportation and mobility during and after the games, especially for those people living in remote areas and most in need of quality transportation.

And the urban transformation goes even further.

The harbor area, for example, which was a degraded place, will become a new center for leisure and culture for local people and for the thousands of tourists that we receive each year.

In the future, the “Porto Maravilha” (Wonder Harbor) will host new office buildings and residences. We are recovering the brightness of the “Wonderful City” that has always enchanted the world since the days when it was the capital of our republic.

The Rio Olympics strongly attracted investment from the domestic private sector, not only for sponsorship but also for modernization and expansion of the city’s hotels.

The Barra Olympic Park, for example, was built largely with private investments, including the infrastructure works of the site.

The Olympic Village, which will host athletes from around the world, is also being built by the private sector, which has already begun to negotiate the sale of the apartments. Thus, it is possible to say that the 2016 Rio Olympics will have one of the highest levels of private investment over the past 20 years.

The Deodoro Sports Complex, one of the venues, located in a poor area of Rio and with the highest concentration of young people in the city, will become a space for local people to practice extreme sports. It will also be the training location for our top athletes.

Barra Olympic Park will be the foundation for the future Olympic training center, where future high-performance athletes can prepare themselves. It will also help to intensify sports cooperation with other countries, especially with our neighbors in South America.

The effort made by the whole society is shown by the increased investments made in Brazil. There are 12 training centers and 261 sport initiation centers, and 46 official tracks of athletics. Investment in the sports legacy of Rio and Brazil already totals $ 1.2 billion.

We are also ensuring the cost efficiency and sustainability of the facilities. The “Arena do Futuro” (Arena of the Future), venue for handball competitions at the Olympic Park, is an example. Built in modules, the arena will be dismantled after the games and transformed into four schools.

The smooth accomplishment of this great project has required constant attention and a joint effort of the federal, state and local governments, as well as the Organizing Committee and the Olympic Public Authority. All of them will be committed to this project until the end of the Paralympic Games in September 2016.

An event with this complexity requires constant attention to details. The works and Rio’s infrastructure have already begun to be tested with the first events held throughout the city. By early 2016 we will have competitions in 40 modalities.

As you can see, Brazil is fully prepared for the arrival of the Olympics. Along with the organization of the event, we will proudly show the world our recent achievements of a strong and consolidated democracy, committed to reducing social inequalities through economic development and investment. This is the collective effort of an entire country.

Let’s show the 15,000 Olympians and Paralympians, thousands of spectators and billions of viewers our energy to overcome many challenges.

The Brazilian people will receive athletes and tourists as well as they did at the World Cup, when the country enchanted the world with the festive atmosphere, security and efficiency.

At that time, all who watched our party on TV wanted to be here in Brazil.

Therefore, do not be just wishing. Come to enjoy all the good things that the Olympic Games and also the things a country like Brazil can offer you: peace, love, joy and lots of happiness!

We wait for you with open heart and arms.

Dilma Rousseff, President of the Federative Republic of Brazil