A controlled explosion by Brazil’s anti-bomb squad took place near the finish line Getty
A controlled explosion was carried out near the finish line of the men’s road race in Rio de Janeiro as Brazil’s anti-bomb squad destroyed a suspect package around two hours and 20 minutes before the race was due to finish.
A loud bang was heard on the BBC’s coverage of the road race, with the commentators Simon Brotherton and former Olympic gold medal-winning cyclist Chris Boardman falling silent for a number of seconds before confirming that the noise had come from near the finish line.
Minutes later though, a number of journalists in Rio de Janeiro took to Twitter to confirm that the bang was caused by a controlled explosion carried out by the Brazilian anti-bomb squad, with the riders still more than 70km away.
The BBC’s Andrew Cropper later confirmed: “Security forces telling us on ground they exploded a suspect bag.
“Area is just behind spectator seating after finish line of road race at Copacabana beach.” READ MORE OF THIS STORY
SOURCES: The Independent/BBC News
