Olympic Sailing Venue Ramp Still Being Fixed

They're cutting it very close at Rio de Janeiro's Olympic sailing venue.

A temporary ramp to launch boats at Rio's Marina da Gloria collapsed a week ago and, with sailing opening on Monday, it's still not fixed. Organizers said it would be ready on Friday, but that won't happen.

Darryl Seibel, a spokesman for the governing body of world sailing, says good progress is being made and the body is "increasingly optimistic."

Rio's Olympic sailing event has drawn unwanted attention because of severe water pollution in the Guanabara Bay venue. Rio treats about half of its waste, dumping the rest into its bacteria- and virus-filled waters.

Seibel says the temporary ramp should be finished over the weekend. If it's not, all the boats must be launched from one permanent concrete ramp.

Seibel says "we could operate with only one, although that's far from ideal, and it's not what we're expecting to do."

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