Among the scandals dogging Rio, Irish hockey is already an uplifting success

Drugs, bugs, refuseniks, and a troubled host city: it really hasn’t been the smoothest of rides so far for Rio 2016, writes Brendan O’Brien

Pretty much every major sporting tournament serves up its first course on the back of an extra-large portion of controversy but the 2016 Olympic Games has already delivered an all-you-can-eat buffet of bad news as we await the opening ceremony two weeks from today.

Rio de Janeiro’s ills, whether financial, political, criminal, or social, have been flagged for years. The drip-fed loss to the Games of various millionaire golfers and tennis stars has heightened exposure levels to the zika story. And then there is the Russian doping scandal making a late run for a place on the podium of opprobrium.