A bullet was reportedly shot through the equestrian press tent by accident at the 2016 Rio Olympics, according to Horse & Hound reporter Alice Collins. Nobody was harmed, but people were understandably concerned when the bullet pierced the white plastic roof of the tent and landed on the carpet.
Stray bullet reportedly shot through Rio press tent by accident
The equestrian press tent is adjacent to a military base and may have encountered a stray bullet. Thankfully, no one was hurt.
According to Horse & Hound website, this is 5.56mm military bullet which pierced large tent of Rio Equestrian centre pic.twitter.com/0fwz3FyroG
— Rob Maul (@Rob_Maul) August 6, 2016
Small tear in the roof where suspected bullet came through ..NZ team staff were inside at the time @NewshubNZ pic.twitter.com/ErSm9fJKhr
— Melissa Davies (@MsMelDavies) August 6, 2016
Police concluded that the bullet was fired unintentionally, according to Melissa Davies of Newshub in New Zealand. Security was reportedly reinforced around the equestrian venue following the incident. A Rio communications director said authorities are confident that the bullet had “nothing to do with the games” but couldn’t say where exactly the bullet came from.
The incident reportedly occurred around lunch, a relatively busy time in the tent as equestrian writers were recapping the morning’s dressage event. It landed next to a member of the British Equestrian Federation, who immediately sought help. Via Horse & Hound:
The venue is adjacent to a military base, with some speculating that the bullet could have been “negligent discharge” — when a recruit accidentally fires a weapon in the wrong direction.
Some journalists were surprised that no subsequent action was taken to tighten security following the incident.
The Rio Olympics have been hampered by concerns over poor security. This does not appear to be an example of that, but it’s nonetheless worrisome for the journalists who assumed they’d be able to file their stories in relative peace.
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