Every Summer Olympics brings an opportunity of a lifetime for thousands of athletes. Although, the basic tenets of the Games are similar, there are certain facts which remain unknown to the public at large. Here, we bring to you, 7 lesser known facts about Rio 2016.
1. South American debut

Rio 2016 will be the first time in Olympic history that a South American country has hosted the Games. The bidding process for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games was officially launched on 16 May 2007. Four candidate cities were chosen for the shortlist on 4 June 2008: Chicago, Madrid, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo. Rio won its bid in 2009, beating out Chicago, Madrid and Tokyo.