Rio 2016: Jeers for Brazil president dampen Olympic joy

A demonstrator in a costume depicting a banker and holding a replica of a fire extinguisher for putting out the “flame” of an imitation Olympic torch, protests against interim Brazilian President Michel Temer. (Photo: AP)

The Maracana Stadium erupted in jeers as Brazil’s unpopular interim President Michel Temer opened the Rio Olympics on Friday — and the hostility spread far beyond the sports venue.

The colorful opening ceremony in the famous football stadium was meant to be Brazil's moment of coming together as first host of the Olympics in South America.

The booing in response to Temer’s less than 15 second statement put an end to that.

Temer, who took over in May when impeachment proceedings started against elected leftist president Dilma Rousseff, said: “After this marvelous spectacle, I declare the Rio Olympic Games open.” For opponents, who believe the impeachment process is a center-right coup, this was their cue.

Jeering spread around the stadium — until a loud barrage of fireworks went off, drowning protesters out.

But if the show went on inside, there was no way to disguise the downbeat, even angry mood among Rio residents outside the stadium.

After a day in which anti-Temer protesters blocked traffic along iconic Copacabana beach and clashed with riot police outside the Maracana, the live coverage of the ceremony did little to raise the many Brazilians’ spirits.

The downbeat reaction mirrored a generally depressed mood in Rio, despite it being a city known for music, sport and joyous carnivals.

Many Cariocas, as residents are called, say that their city faces crushing economic problems, poor infrastructure and crime — and that the Olympics have benefited mostly the rich.